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   'We will not stand by and watch': Netflix, Disney, and Warner Bros. threaten   
   legal action over Seedance 2.0 videos starring Marvel, DC, and Stranger Things   
   characters   
      
   By Tom Power published 4 hours ago   
      
   Studios have hit out at ByteDance for 'blatant infringement' of their   
   copyrighted works   
      
       Netflix has condemed the use of its IP in Seedance 2.0   
       Characters from numerous Netflix-owned properties have recently appeared in   
   AI-generated videos   
       Disney, Warner Bros, and Paramount have also hit out at ByteDance over   
   similar incidents   
      
   Netflix has joined the chorus of dissenting voices over the use of its   
   intellectual property (IP) in videos created by Seedance 2.0.   
      
   Yesterday (February 17), Netflix sent a cease and desist letter to ByteDance,   
   which owns the artificial intelligence (AI) video generator, and threatened to   
   take legal action if ByteDance didn't stop treating "our valued IP as free,   
   public domain clip art."   
      
   Netflix's warning comes amid the use of characters from some of its most   
   popular franchises in recent videos created by Seedance 2.0, including   
   characters from Stranger Things, Kpop Demon Hunters, and Bridgerton.   
      
   The recreation of the life-threatening games seen in Squid Game - one video   
   sees controversial Tesla founder Elon Musk inserted into one of the games'   
   deadly challenges (per Deadline) - was also mentioned in Netflix's two-page   
   correspondence.   
      
   For the uninitiated: Seedance is a generative-AI video maker that allows users   
   to create near-realistic footage from just a few short text prompts.   
      
   It wasn't until ByteDance, which also owns the hugely popular shortform video   
   app TikTok, launched version 2.0 of its generative AI tool on February 12,   
   though, that it became a hot topic of discussion. Indeed, the emergence of a   
   video made with Seedance 2.0, which shows Hollywood stars Brad Pitt and Tom   
   Cruise fighting on a bridge, went viral 24 hours before the program's latest   
   update went live.   
      
   Unsurprisingly, the footage immediately caused concern among many, not least   
   Hollywood studios. In the days since the aforementioned video circulated   
   online, others have similarly gained traction, with users populating AI-created   
   videos with characters from Marvel and Star Wars (both of which are owned by   
   Disney), DC Comics superheroes including Superman and Batman (Warner Bros.),   
   and characters from various Paramount properties.   
      
   Furious Disney, Warner Bros. and Paramount executives have already condemned   
   ByteDance for "blatant infringement" of copyright and conducting a "virtual   
   smash-and-grab" of their IPs in their own fiery cease and desist letters.   
   Meanwhile, the Screen Actors Guild of America (SAG-AFTRA) has also called the   
   use of Cruise and Pitt's likeness in the aforementioned Seedance video as   
   "unacceptable".   
      
   However, with Netflix now entering the fray - one of the world's best   
   streaming services says it "won't stand by and watch" Seedance use its   
   copyrighted materials - the pressure on ByteDance has only grown in stature.   
   Will the likes of Amazon, Apple, and NBCUniversal eventually join their fellow   
   entertainment giants? If any of their IPs are used in a similar fashion,   
   absolutely.   
      
   For what it's worth, the Chinese company has said it'll take steps to protect   
   US studios' biggest franchises. In a statement shared with Deadline on February   
   16, a spokesperson said: "[ByteDance] 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."   
      
   The furore over Seedance 2.0 comes amid the ongoing, largely unregulated use of   
   generative-AI models to make, well, whatever a user wants. Hollywood firms have   
   hit out at other similarly marketed programs, including OpenAI's Sora 2, while   
   governments worldwide have been left scrambling over how to deal with such AI   
   tools and, where possible, fast-track new laws to limit how they can be used.   
      
   However, with studios like Disney actually agreeing three-year licensing deals   
   with tools like Sora 2, which will allow fans to create shortform videos   
   featuring their favorite Disney-owned characters, the use of AI tools like   
   Seedance 2.0 will continue to operate in a gray area. That is, until   
   governments, companies, and everyday users work out how best to utilize them   
   - and how to respond when they're used in the wrong way.   
      
      
   https://www.techradar.com/streaming/we-will-not-stand-by-and-watch-netflix-disn   
   ey-and-warner-bros-threaten-legal-action-over-seedance-2-0-videos-starring-marv   
   el-dc-and-stranger-things-characters   
      
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