ByteDance to Limit AI Video Tool After Disney's Legal Action
Chinese technology company ByteDance has committed to restricting its artificial intelligence (AI) video creation application, Seedance, following legal threats from Disney and objections from other major entertainment companies.
Recently, videos generated using the latest iteration of Seedance have become widespread online, garnering praise for their realistic quality.
However, this surge has raised concerns among several Hollywood studios, which have accused the developers of the AI platform of infringing on copyright protections.
Disney's Cease-and-Desist Letter
On Friday, Disney issued a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance, alleging that the company provided Seedance with an unauthorized "pirated library" of Disney's copyrighted characters, including those from Marvel and Star Wars franchises.
Disney's legal representatives characterized ByteDance's actions as a "virtual smash-and-grab" of their intellectual property, citing the use of superheroes from Marvel, Star Wars, and various animated series.
ByteDance's Response
On Monday, ByteDance communicated to the BBC that the company "respects intellectual property rights and we have heard the concerns regarding Seedance 2.0."
"We are taking steps to strengthen current safeguards as we work to prevent the unauthorised use of intellectual property and likeness by users."
ByteDance declined to provide further details when asked about the specific safeguards it intends to implement.
Functionality and Content of Seedance
Seedance, like other generative AI tools, creates videos based on brief text prompts.
Many videos produced by Seedance feature real actors and television shows, with some clips gaining viral attention since the launch of version 2.0 on 12 February.
The BBC has identified videos online purportedly generated by Seedance depicting Star Wars characters Anakin Skywalker and Rey engaged in a lightsaber duel, as well as Spider-Man fighting Captain America on New York City streets.
ByteDance has not disclosed the datasets used to train Seedance.
The company previously stated that it had disabled the feature allowing users to upload images of real people.
ByteDance reiterated its respect for intellectual property rights and copyright protections and emphasized its serious approach to any potential infringement.
Industry and Government Reactions
Disney's legal challenge follows criticism from other Hollywood organizations regarding Seedance.
The Motion Picture Association, representing major US studios such as Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount, and Netflix, has demanded that Seedance "immediately cease its infringing activity."
The actors' union SAG-AFTRA has also accused Seedance of "blatant infringement."
Additionally, the Japanese government has initiated an investigation into ByteDance for possible copyright violations after AI-generated videos featuring popular Japanese anime characters appeared online.
Related Legal Actions Against AI Tools
Other AI image-generation platforms have faced similar legal challenges.
Last year, Disney and NBCUniversal filed a lawsuit against the AI image generator Midjourney, accusing it of producing "endless unauthorised copies" of their copyrighted material. This case remains ongoing.
Disney has also requested that Google restrict the generation of its characters on Google's AI platforms.
