OpenAI "Needs to Take Immediate and Decisive Action" to Prevent IP Infringement (www.hollywoodreporter.com)

The Motion Picture Association, led by CEO Charles Rivkin, publicly demanded that OpenAI “take immediate and decisive action” to stop Sora 2 from generating and distributing videos that infringe studio films, shows, and characters. Sora 2 is an invite‑only app that lets users place themselves into hyperrealistic clips—including manipulations of major IP—and until now has used an opt‑out approach for character generation. Rivkin argued OpenAI bears the responsibility to prevent infringement, not rightsholders, after examples of South Park, Pokémon and SpongeBob‑style outputs spread across social platforms. In response, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company will offer rightsholders more granular controls over character generation, and talent agency WME has already instructed OpenAI to opt its clients out. Why it matters: the MPA’s unusually sharp stance signals Hollywood moving off the sidelines and escalating pressure on generative AI platforms to build enforceable rights controls. The episode underscores emerging technical and policy battlegrounds—platforms must implement mechanisms such as opt‑in/opt‑out controls, rights management APIs, content detection/classification, and takedown workflows to avoid legal and reputational risk. It also echoes ongoing litigation trends (e.g., Midjourney suits) that will shape how models are trained, governed, and licensed in creative industries going forward.