ByteDance Halts Video AI Model Launch Amid Copyright Disputes
- tech360.tv
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, has suspended the global launch of its latest video-generation model, Seedance 2.0. This decision follows a series of copyright disputes with major Hollywood studios and streaming platforms.
The company had aimed to make the new video model available to customers worldwide in mid-March. However, these plans have since been suspended, according to two individuals with direct knowledge of the situation.
Last month, ByteDance stated it would implement measures to prevent the unauthorised use of intellectual property on its artificial intelligence video generator, Seedance 2.0. This announcement came after threats of legal action from U.S. studios, including Disney.
Disney had sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance last month. It accused the firm of using Disney characters without permission to train and power Seedance 2.0.
Videos generated by the model, featuring content such as Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in a fight, had gone viral in China. Disney further alleged that ByteDance pre-packaged Seedance with a pirated library of copyrighted characters from franchises like Star Wars and Marvel.
These characters were reportedly portrayed as public-domain clip art. ByteDance officially unveiled Seedance 2.0 in Feb.
The system is designed for professional film, e-commerce, and advertising use. It can process text, images, audio, and video simultaneously to reduce content production costs.
Seedance 2.0 has garnered attention and comparisons to DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence company. DeepSeek has developed models that rival those from Anthropic and OpenAI.
Tech executives, including Elon Musk, have praised Seedance 2.0's capability. They noted its ability to generate cinematic storylines from a limited number of prompts.
ByteDance’s legal team is currently working to identify and resolve potential legal issues. Engineers are also adding safeguards to prevent the model from generating content that could lead to further intellectual property violations.
ByteDance has suspended the global launch of its Seedance 2.0 video AI model.
The suspension is due to copyright disputes with Hollywood studios and streaming platforms.
Disney accused ByteDance of using its characters without permission to train Seedance 2.0.
Source: REUTERS
