Voice Rights & AI Disclosure

Last updated: 2026-04-19

This document is Claude-authored (not attorney-reviewed in Phase 1; attorney review planned post-launch). It is the authoritative disclosure required under EU AI Act Article 50 for synthetic audio content. For removal requests or disputes, email [email protected].

Who narrated this book?

Iconic Voices publishes audiobook narrations of public-domain texts. Every narration is either:

• Actor-voiced — a professional voice actor reading the book in the style of the original author. The actor's own voice is a natural human voice; we describe it as "in the style of" so you know it is an interpretation, not the author's actual voice.
• AI-voiced short demo — a 30 to 60-second marketing or landing clip produced with voice-synthesis technology (ElevenLabs) trained on public-domain archival recordings. These demos are always labeled "AI-generated interpretation inspired by [Author Name]." No full-length audiobook is AI-voiced in v1 of this service.

Every asset on the site and in ads carries the production-mode tag so you know which one you are listening to.

Are these voices real?

No. You are never hearing the author's actual recorded voice on Iconic Voices. Where the author has a public-domain archival recording, we use it only as reference material for a short demo clip, and we label that clip as an AI interpretation. Where the author has no recording at all, production is entirely by a human voice actor in the style of the author.

This is a mandatory disclosure under EU AI Act Article 50 (Transparency Obligations for Providers and Users of Certain AI Systems), which requires any synthetic audio content to be clearly labeled as AI-generated. Article 50 takes effect 2 August 2026; we are compliant today.

Can I request my voice, or a relative's voice, be removed?

Yes — default response is immediate removal. Email [email protected] identifying:

• Your relationship to the author (estate executor, heir, performer, representative)
• The specific content you would like removed (author, title, ad creative, URL if on our site)

We acknowledge within 24 hours and complete removal within 24 to 48 hours. We do not require a formal DMCA notice and we do not litigate takedowns. See our internal takedown runbook (LEGAL/TAKEDOWN-RUNBOOK.md) for the full workflow.

Why we do this

Historical knowledge locked in public-domain books deserves a wider audience. An AI-generated interpretation inspired by the original author lets modern listeners engage with those texts in a fresh way. We chose this format because we believe in maximum transparency: every voice is labeled, every text is public domain, and every takedown is respected.

Standards we follow

We align our voice-rights practice with the following statutes:

• EU AI Act, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 50 — transparency obligations for synthetic audio. Effective 2 August 2026.
• California AB 1836 (2024) — digital-replica rights of deceased persons (70-year post-mortem period).
• California AB 2602 (2024) — digital-replica rights of living performers.
• New York Civil Rights Law §50-f — digital replicas of deceased persons (40-year post-mortem period).
• Tennessee ELVIS Act, Tenn. Code Ann. §47-25-1101 et seq. (effective 1 July 2024) — voice and likeness protection.

Specific author production modes

Per our author dossier (LEGAL/AUTHORS.md), production modes for the MVP 5 authors are:

Questions or removal requests

For voice-removal or rights questions, email [email protected]. For general legal questions, email [email protected].