Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles met with his Pacific counterparts in Viña del Mar, Chile, to discuss expanding the Pacific Response Group (PRG) — a multinational body originally focused on humanitarian disaster response — to include regional stability and security missions.

The PRG currently includes Australia, New Zealand, Chile, France, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and Tonga. During the meeting, ministers instructed their defence chiefs to explore the feasibility of broadening PRG’s mandate and establishing a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) to allow freer troop deployment and coordination among member nations. Officials said the group could evolve into a rapid-response force capable of handling regional crises.

However, the plan may prove controversial among Pacific nations with security ties to China. Analysts suggest that Australia’s move could be perceived as an attempt to exclude China from regional security affairs, heightening great-power competition and potentially straining Australia’s diplomatic relations with its neighbours.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) recently filed a lawsuit against Microsoft, accusing the company of misleading approximately 2.7 million Australian personal and household users after integrating the AI assistant Copilot into Microsoft 365 subscription plans on October 31, 2024.

The ACCC stated that Microsoft’s promotion only informed users that they would need to accept the new Copilot-inclusive plan and pay a higher fee, or cancel their subscription. It did not clearly indicate that users could retain the original “Classic Plan” without Copilot. This option was only presented when users started the cancellation process, leading many consumers to upgrade or cancel without full knowledge.

Microsoft responded that it will carefully review the ACCC’s claims, emphasizing that consumer trust and transparency are priorities and that it will cooperate with regulators to ensure all practices comply with legal and ethical standards.

The ACCC is seeking court orders, including fines, injunctions, consumer compensation, and litigation costs. Experts say that if Microsoft is found guilty of misleading behavior, it could face significant fines and set an important precedent for transparency in subscription services and AI promotion globally.

The Australian government recently stated it will not grant copyright exemptions to AI companies, prohibiting the use of local creative works for AI model training without authorization. This position responds to opposition from the creative industries to the Productivity Commission’s proposal, which suggested that allowing AI to perform “text and data mining” could potentially generate up to AUD 116 billion in economic growth.

The government emphasized that copyright protection remains a cornerstone for safeguarding creators’ income and the creative ecosystem. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland noted that while Australia will explore adjustments to AI and copyright laws, it will not currently consider any exemption for AI training. She also revealed a dedicated taskforce has been established to assess AI’s potential impact on the creative industry and economy, seeking to balance innovation with protection of creators’ rights.

Creators and artists welcomed the move, saying it prevents large tech companies from exploiting copyrighted content without compensation. However, some tech companies and industry observers warned it may slow AI development and place Australia at a disadvantage in the global AI competition.