If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net.
Two of Hollywood’s biggest entertainment powerhouses, Disney and NBCUniversal, have jointly filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Midjourney, accusing the AI firm of misappropriating some of their most valuable intellectual property.
The complaint, submitted in Los Angeles federal court on Wednesday, claims the San Francisco-based company exploited artificial intelligence to mass-produce unauthorized versions of iconic characters from their film libraries.
We obtained a copy of the lawsuit for you here.
The studios allege that Midjourney’s image-generation platform has churned out countless visual imitations of characters like Darth Vader, Elsa, the Minions, and others, with no permission or licensing involved. By turning simple user prompts into vivid renderings, the service has, according to the lawsuit, crossed a clear legal line.
In a statement accompanying the filing, Horacio Gutierrez, Disney’s chief legal officer, said, “We are bullish on the promise of AI technology and optimistic about how it can be used responsibly as a tool to further human creativity, but piracy is piracy, and the fact that it’s done by an AI company does not make it any less infringing.”
NBCUniversal’s legal chief, Kim Harris, emphasized that the legal action is aimed at defending the creative labor and substantial financial investments behind the studio’s entertainment catalog. “We’re suing to protect the hard work of all the artists whose work entertains and inspires us and the significant investment we make in our content,” she said.
The Motion Picture Association voiced its support, with Chairman Charles Rivkin declaring that “strong copyright protection is the backbone of our industry.” He advocated for regulations that preserve ownership rights while encouraging responsible AI innovation.
Midjourney, founded by David Holz in 2021, operates on a subscription model that allows users to generate images by submitting text-based prompts.
The studios claim the company relied heavily on their copyrighted material when training its AI, all without permission. They argue that despite being notified of the infringement, Midjourney took no action to prevent further unauthorized use and instead launched improved versions of its tool, enhancing its ability to produce high-quality imitations of well-known characters.
Specific examples cited in the lawsuit include AI-generated imagery featuring characters such as Yoda, Iron Man, Buzz Lightyear, Bart Simpson, Shrek, Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon, and Po from Kung Fu Panda. The studios contend that these recreations are direct derivatives of their intellectual property, created and distributed without any investment or creative input from Midjourney.
The plaintiffs, representing various Disney and Universal subsidiaries, are seeking an injunction that would stop the company from offering its current services unless protective measures are implemented. They are also asking the court to award damages, though the filing does not specify an amount.
“By helping itself to plaintiffs’ copyrighted works, and then distributing images (and soon videos) that blatantly incorporate and copy Disney’s and Universal’s famous characters — without investing a penny in their creation — Midjourney is the quintessential copyright free-rider and a bottomless pit of plagiarism,” the complaint reads, calling the company’s actions “calculated and willful.”
If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net.
The post Disney and NBCUniversal Sue Midjourney Over AI-Generated Characters appeared first on Reclaim The Net.
Click this link for the original source of this article.
Author: Cindy Harper
This content is courtesy of, and owned and copyrighted by, https://reclaimthenet.org and its author. This content is made available by use of the public RSS feed offered by the host site and is used for educational purposes only. If you are the author or represent the host site and would like this content removed now and in the future, please contact USSANews.com using the email address in the Contact page found in the website menu.
