ByteDance and Hollywood trade group sign IP protection accord

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has entered into a memorandum of understanding with The Motion Picture Association (MPA) to establish a framework for protecting the intellectual property of major Hollywood studios. The agreement formalises a shared framework designed to prevent copyright infringement against the trade group’s members, which include Disney, Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery.

The memorandum applies to all ByteDance artificial intelligence models, encompassing those utilised on TikTok, the TikTok USDS Joint Venture, CapCut and Dreamina. In a press release, the MPA described the arrangement as representing significant cooperation between the two organisations, marking a resolution to a dispute that had previously escalated into legal threats.

The deal follows a cease-and-desist letter sent by the MPA to ByteDance in February, which accused the company’s AI models of using copyrighted material without permission. In response to the letter, ByteDance pledged to strengthen safeguards regarding the unauthorised use of intellectual property and likeness, and reportedly suspended the global rollout of its Seedance 2.0 model.

The MPA stated that ByteDance has implemented meaningful guardrails with its AI models since the initial dispute. The trade association noted that recent releases, specifically Seedream 5.0 Pro and Seedance 2.5, reflect continued advances in IP protections. MPA CEO and chair Charles Rivkin stated that the association has had constructive engagement with ByteDance throughout the process.

While this agreement resolves tensions with ByteDance, Hollywood studios remain engaged in separate legal action against other technology firms. Studios are currently involved in a lawsuit against Midjourney, also accusing the image generation platform of copyright infringement.