"Three-year deal lets users create AI videos of Mickey Mouse, Darth Vader, and more."
I'm sure that's going to take about 30 minutes before they begin to regret the videos coming out of it...
this post was submitted on 11 Dec 2025
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People are acting like this is a win for OpenAI and the AI industry, but I think this is potentially a major victory for IP holders like Disney.
Up until now, the core assumption from the industry around AI has been that it is all fair use, and thus no license (or even so much as basic consent) was needed to train on copyrighted works or produce output resembling specific trademarked IP.
Now Disney and OpenAI have come to an agreement that explicitly allows OpenAI to produce videos of their characters, but from what I can tell does not allow them to train on Disney's works to do it.
This deal lasts only 3 years, and so what happens is they don't renew it 3 years from now? What does it mean for the other AI companies that are producing Disney IP without this agreement? What about all the other character and person likenesses that Sora is producing without any such agreement?
Essentially, I think this has allowed Disney to put the ball back in their court. They are deciding who does and doesn't use their characters. They have put value into the idea of licensing trademarks for AI use. And I think this sets a dangerous precedent for AI companies, because what does this mean for all of the IP holders who they aren't in an agreement with?
I like that take.
https://arstechnica.com/google/2025/12/disney-says-google-ai-infringes-copyright-on-a-massive-scale/
I wonder if this being right on the heels is related to that.
Definitely not just a coincidence.
It's a classic move by an established party. Use your momentum to add increased costs for compliance, increasing the entry costs and making it impossible for smaller and freer players to compete. It's away of pulling the ladder behind them. Openai didn't have to pay this, until they got big enough to have the money for it. Now everyone else will be expected to do so as well no matter how small they are.