The Motion Picture Association of Japan has criticized ByteDance’s AI video generator SeaDance 2.0, accusing the company of “ignoring” copyright laws and calling on the company to “cease its infringing activities.”
MPA Chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin released a statement on Thursday following the launch of Seadance 2.0, a video of an AI-generated rooftop fight between Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt that went viral on X, racking up more than 1.2 million views (and counting).
“In just one day, China’s AI service SeaDance 2.0 carried out massive unauthorized use of U.S. copyrighted material,” Rivkin said in a statement. “By launching a service that operates without meaningful protections against copyright infringement, ByteDance is ignoring established copyright law that protects the rights of creators and supports millions of American jobs. ByteDance should immediately cease its infringing activities.”
However, TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance praised SeaDance’s new model, calling it a “significant leap forward in generational quality.”
This is not the first time MPA has been tasked with AI video services. Back in October, Rivkin made similar criticisms of OpenAI’s Sora 2, calling on the company to take “immediate and decisive action” to address copyright violations that surfaced on its platform.
“Since the release of Sora 2, we have seen a proliferation of videos on OpenAI’s services and social media that infringe on our members’ movies, shows, and characters,” Rivkin said at the time. “While OpenAI has stated that it will ‘soon’ give rights holders more control over character generation, we must acknowledge that it is our responsibility, not rights holders’, to prevent infringement of our Sora 2 service. OpenAI must take immediate and decisive action to address this issue. Established copyright law protects the rights of creators and applies here as well.”
Following the criticism, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman addressed Sora 2’s copyright concerns and vowed to make changes to give rights holders more control over their rights.
Despite the outcry against AI, many in the industry are embracing the evolving technology. For example, Disney signed a licensing agreement with OpenAI in December, investing $1 billion in the technology company and bringing its various characters to Sora.
