Motion Picture Association Accuses OpenAI of Copyright Infringement
According to a report from CNBC, the Motion Picture Association (MPA) is accusing OpenAI, the massive artificial intelligence (AI) company, of copyright infringement. MPA is demanding immediate action by OpenAI to stop copyright infringement by its new video generation model called Sora 2. Here, our Florida copyright infringement attorney discusses the case in more detail.
Allegations: MPA Believes OpenAI Committed Copyright Infringement
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is a trade organization that represents major film studios and streaming companies, including Disney, Netflix, and Warner Bros. It advocates for the global film, television, and streaming industries. Copyright protection is one of its core objectives. Sora 2 is a next-generation AI model by OpenAI for generating video and audio that claims greater physical accuracy, realism and controllability than its earlier comparable systems. It was released to the public on September 30th, 2025.
Soon after its premiere, MPA accused Sora 2 of copyright infringement. More specifically, the film industry’s leading trade organization alleges that Sora 2 too easily allowed users to produce content that infringes on copyright protected work. The MPA called for quick and decisive action by OpenAI to stop Sora 2 from being used for copyright infringement. For its part, OpenAI countered that its Sora 2 model is compliant with the framework set up by Fair Use. Though, the company did also express interests in voluntarily adding more tools to protect third party copyrights.
What to Know About AI Video Generation and U.S. Copyright Law
Generative AI is still very much a novel issue for United States copyright law. When an AI system produces video content, copyright infringement risk can arise at two main stages:
- The Training: During the training phase of generative AI, the tech companies that develop these tools will often feed their models large datasets. The dataset may include copyright protected materials. If those works are used without authorization or a valid defense, such as the Fair Use Doctrine (17 U.S.C. §107), that could potentially raise problems. Indeed, a copyright holder may bring a legal claim for infringement. U.S. courts have not yet definitively ruled whether large-scale data scraping for model training qualifies as fair use.
- The Output: In the output phase of AI generated content production, copyright infringement may occur if the generated video reproduces protected elements of an existing work (distinctive characters, scenes, soundtracks, etc). with substantial similarity. Even unintentional replication may trigger liability if the AI model was trained on the original work and the similarity is more than coincidental. Both creators and platforms need to take proper care.
Note: Currently, there is no statutory safe harbor specific to generative AI. While legislation may eventually be passed, liability is still governed by traditional copyright law and copyright doctrines.
Contact Our South Florida Copyright Infringement Attorney Today
At Perkins Law — Brand Protection, our Florida copyright infringement lawyer is a solutions-forward advocate for clients. If you have any legal questions about AI and copyright law, please do not hesitate to contact us for a completely confidential consultation. From our Boca Raton office, we handle copyright infringement matters throughout South Florida.
Source:
cnbc.com/2025/10/07/openais-sora-2-must-stop-allowing-copyright-infringement-mpa-says.html
