As Disney inks a $1 billion deal with OpenAI to license its characters for AI movies, the leisure large can also be going after Google. Disney despatched Google a cease-and-desist letter Wednesday, alleging that Google AI fashions are infringing on its copyright protections on a “huge scale.”
“Google’s AI Providers are designed to free experience off Disney’s mental property. Google has refused to implement any technological measures to mitigate or stop copyright infringement, although such measures are available and being utilized by Google’s rivals,” the letter reads. “As a substitute, Google continues to straight exploit Disney’s copyrights for business acquire.”
Google has launched a serious overhaul to its AI merchandise with Gemini 3, which incorporates the second technology of its in style nano banana professional AI picture mannequin. There was a large uptick within the reputation and talent of artistic AI instruments this 12 months. New fashions give customers the power to create ultra-realistic AI photographs and movies. This potential has lengthy nervous copyright and mental property homeowners, and enhancements in AI fashions this 12 months have introduced these issues into clearer view. Disney, one of many largest mental property homeowners, has turn into central to such authorized and moral debates.
The letter outlines Disney’s issues that Google is utilizing its place as a market chief to create and disseminate AI content material. Because the father or mother firm of YouTube, Google is “flooding the market with infringing works, and reaping huge income and different worth from its illegal, dangerous and damaging exploitation of Disney’s copyrighted works,” the letter says.
Disney says it introduced its issues to Google’s consideration months in the past, however the tech firm did nothing in response, which led to the cease-and-desist letter this week. A Google spokesperson mentioned in an announcement, “Now we have a longstanding and mutually useful relationship with Disney, and can proceed to have interaction with them.” They added that Google makes use of information from the open internet to construct AI and has copyright controls in Google and YouTube.
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Disney, together with Common and Warner Bros., had already filed lawsuits in opposition to Midjourney AI over related infringement issues, calling the AI firm “a bottomless pit of plagiarism.” Disney’s criticism within the new cease-and-desist letter offers with the identical problem that Google AI customers can use its fashions to create content material that’s too just like its copyrighted characters like Darth Vader. However whereas Disney takes authorized motion in opposition to Google, it has additionally explored licensing alternatives with different AI firms like OpenAI.
On Thursday, Disney introduced it had inked a $1 billion deal with OpenAI, one of many largest rivals to Google. The deal offers OpenAI clearance to make use of greater than 200 iconic Disney characters in AI photographs and Sora movies, together with these from Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars. The deal makes Disney a “main buyer” of OpenAI, bringing ChatGPT to Disney staff and choose Sora AI movies to Disney Plus. This can be a markedly completely different strategy from earlier AI-related authorized motion taken by Disney.
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, father or mother firm of CNET, in April filed a lawsuit in opposition to OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in coaching and working its AI methods.)
For extra, try the brand new pricing for Disney Plus, Hulu Dwell and ESPN and our information to understanding copyright and AI.
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