Disney accuses ByteDance of 'virtual smash-and-grab' as Seedance 2.0 sparks IP battle

Hollywood isn't happy about the new Seedance 2.0 video generator | TechCrunch

Hollywood organizations are pushing back against a new AI video model called Seedance 2.0, which they say has quickly become a tool for "blatant" copyright infringement. ByteDance, the Chinese company that recently finalized a deal to sell TikTok's U.S. operations (it retains a stake in the new joint venture), launched Seedance 2.0 earlier this week. According to the Wall Street Journal, the updated model is currently available to Chinese users of ByteDance's Jianying app, and the company says it will soon be available to global users of its CapCut app. Similar to tools such as OpenAI's Sora, Seedance allows users to create videos (currently limited to 15 seconds in length) by just entering a text prompt. And like Sora, Seedance quickly drew criticism for an apparent lack of guardrails around the ability to create videos using the likeness of real people, as well as studios' intellectual property. After one X user posted a brief video showing Tom Cruise fighting Brad Pitt, which they said was created by "a 2 line prompt in seedance 2," "Deadpool" screenwriter Rhett Reese responded, "I hate to say it. It's likely over for us." The Motion Picture Association soon issued a statement from CEO Charles Rivkin demanding that ByteDance "immediately cease its infringing activity." "In a single day, the Chinese AI service Seedance 2.0 has engaged in unauthorized use of U.S. copyrighted works on a massive scale," Rivkin said. "By launching a service that operates without meaningful safeguards against infringement, ByteDance is disregarding well-established copyright law that protects the rights of creators and underpins millions of American jobs." The Human Artistry Campaign -- an initiative backed by Hollywood unions and trade groups -- condemned Seedance 2.0 as "an attack one very creator around the world," while the actors' union SAG-AFTRA said it "stands with the studios in condemning the blatant infringement enabled by Bytedance's new AI video model Seedance 2.0." Seedance videos have apparently featured Disney-owned characters such as Spider-Man, Darth Vader, and Grogu, better known as Baby Yoda, prompting the company to take legal action. Axios reports that Disney has sent a cease-and-desist letter accusing ByteDance of a "virtual smash-and-grab of Disney's IP"and claiming the Chinese company is "hijacking Disney's characters by reproducing, distributing, and creating derivative works featuring those characters." Disney isn't necessarily opposed to working with AI companies -- while it has reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to Google over similar issues, it's signed a three-year licensing deal with OpenAI. TechCrunch has reached out to ByteDance for comment.

Disney accuses ByteDance of 'virtual smash-and-grab' when using copyrighted works to train its AI

Disney is going after another generative AI tool, accusing ByteDance and its recently released Seedance 2.0 of using its copyrighted material without permission. As first reported on by Axios, the Walt Disney Company sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance, claiming the Chinese company developed its Seedance tool "with a pirated library of Disney's copyrighted characters from Star Wars, Marvel, and other Disney franchises, as if Disney's coveted intellectual property were free public domain clip art." The letter, which was obtained by Axios, included examples of Seedance videos featuring copyrighted Disney characters, including Spider-Man, Darth Vader, Peter Griffin and more. Even though ByteDance just released Seedance 2.0 on Thursday, it's already earned praise, but also indignation from Hollywood studios, when it comes to its AI-generating capabilities. With the strong early momentum, Seedance has already found itself in hot water with one of the largest media companies in the world. However, it's not the first time that Disney has threatened legal action against an AI company, since Character.AI received a cease-and-desist letter for the same offense in September. A few months later, Disney even accused Google of copyright infringement when training its AI models. On the other hand, Disney partnered with OpenAI in a three-year licensing agreement that allows the AI giant to generate images and videos using that highly sought-after intellectual property.

Scoop: Disney sends cease and desist letter to ByteDance over Seedance 2.0

Why it matters: It's the most serious action a Hollywood studio has taken so far against ByteDance since it launched Seedance 2.0 on Thursday. Zoom in: The letter, addressed to ByteDance global general counsel John Rogovin, accuses ByteDance of pre-packaging its Seedance service "with a pirated library of Disney's copyrighted characters from Star Wars, Marvel, and other Disney franchises, as if Disney's coveted intellectual property were free public domain clip art." * "Over Disney's well-publicized objections, ByteDance is hijacking Disney's characters by reproducing, distributing, and creating derivative works featuring those characters. ByteDance's virtual smash-and-grab of Disney's IP is willful, pervasive, and totally unacceptable," Disney's outside attorney David Singer wrote. * "We believe this is just the tip of the iceberg - which is shocking considering Seedance has only been available for a few days," he added. Between the lines: The letter includes a slew of examples of infringing Seedance videos that feature Disney's copyrighted characters, including Spider-Man, Darth Vader, Star Wars' Grogu (Baby Yoda), Peter Griffin from Family Guy and others. * Disney points to examples of users distributing those videos publicly on social media to showcase how widespread the infringement has become. * The company also alleges Seedance has infringed on Disney's copyrighted materials to benefit its commercial service without permission. Zoom out: Hollywood has been quick to denounce ByteDance and Seedance 2.0 for infringing on studio and talent rights broadly. * On Thursday, Motion Picture Association chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin issued a statement calling on ByteDance to "immediately cease its infringing activity." * The Human Artistry Campaign, a coalition that includes dozens of creative groups including SAG-AFTRA and the Directors Guild of America, on Friday said, "Authorities should use every legal tool at their disposal to stop this wholesale theft." The big picture: Disney has been aggressive in defending its intellectual property from theft by AI companies, and its actions have yielded some positive results. * In September, the company sent a cease and desist letter to Character.AI alleging copyright infringement and Character.AI made changes to the way it used Disney's intellectual property in response. * Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter to Google in December alleging copyright infringement, and shortly after it was reported that Google removed dozens of AI-generated videos depicting Disney characters without permission. * Last June, Disney -- alongside NBCUniversal -- became the first major studio to sue a generative AI company when it filed a complaint against Midjourney. It later teamed with NBCU and Warner Bros. Discovery to sue the Chinese AI firm MiniMax, alleging large-scale piracy of their respective studios' copyrighted works. What to watch: Disney has made it clear that it's open to partnering with AI companies, on the right terms.