ByteDance's Seedance 2.0 Sparks Copyright Controversy: MPA and Hollywood Unions Demand Action
Seedance 2.0 is a video creation tool that allows users to generate videos based on text prompts, similar to OpenAI's Sora. However, the tool has faced criticism for enabling the creation of videos using real people's likenesses and intellectual property from studios without any restrictions. An example of this was when a user shared a video featuring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in a fight scene, claiming it was made with just a two-line prompt in Seedance 2.0. The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has demanded that ByteDance, the company behind Seedance 2.0, stop its infringing activities immediately. MPA CEO Charles Rivkin expressed concern over the unauthorized use of US copyrighted works on a large scale by the Chinese AI service.
The MPA CEO accused ByteDance of launching Seedance 2.0 without adequate safeguards against infringement and disregarding established copyright laws that protect creators' rights and support millions of American jobs. The Human Artistry Campaign, a coalition of Hollywood unions and trade groups, denounced Seedance 2.0 as an assault on creators worldwide. Additionally, the actors' union SAG-AFTRA condemned the blatant infringement facilitated by ByteDance's new AI video model. Disney has also taken legal action against ByteDance for featuring its characters in Seedance videos without permission. The company issued a cease-and-desist letter accusing ByteDance of engaging in a "virtual smash-and-grab" of Disney's intellectual property.
In conclusion, Seedance 2.0 has come under fire for allowing the unauthorized use of copyrighted materials and real people's likenesses in videos created using the platform. The controversy has sparked concerns among industry stakeholders, including the Motion Picture Association, Hollywood unions, and Disney, leading to calls for ByteDance to address these issues and respect intellectual property rights.