Google Removes Disney AI Videos After Legal Action
Google is responding to Disney’s cease and desist by removing numerous AI-generated videos featuring characters owned by the entertainment giant. This action comes after Disney initiated legal steps against Google, asserting protection for its intellectual property.
The move follows Disney’s recent $1 billion agreement with OpenAI to license several characters for a three-year period on the platform Sora. As part of this arrangement, Google has taken down AI-generated videos on YouTube that showcased well-known characters such as Mickey Mouse, Deadpool, and Moana.
A Google representative stated, “We have a longstanding and mutually beneficial relationship with Disney, and will continue to engage with them. More generally, we use public data from the open web to build our AI and have developed additional innovative copyright controls like Google-extended and Content ID for YouTube, which give sites and copyright holders control over their content.”
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On Wednesday, Disney sent a letter claiming that Google’s AI training models and services infringe its copyrights on a “massive scale.” This allegation surfaced just as Disney announced its agreement with OpenAI, which will provide use of its characters and intellectual property in OpenAI’s services.
Sources familiar with Disney’s strategy indicated that the timing of the letter was intentional. “Our agreement with OpenAI demonstrates that the world of AI does not have to be lawless, and that technology innovators and creative industries can work together and thrive if they are willing to respect the value of creators and their works,” the source remarked.
