Sam Altman Announces Sora's 'Granular,' Opt-In Copyright Management

OpenAI appears to be shifting its stance on copyright and intellectual property for its new video app, Sora.

Before Sora's launch this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI informed Hollywood studios and agencies they would need to explicitly opt out to prevent their IP from being used in Sora-generated videos.

Despite its invite-only status, the app rapidly ascended to the top of the App Store charts. Sora's standout feature is arguably its "cameos," which let users upload biometric data to insert their digital likeness into AI-generated videos.

Concurrently, many users are reveling in breaching copyright by producing videos featuring popular characters owned by studios. Some of these creations even have characters commenting on the company's copyright policies, such as videos where Pikachu and SpongeBob SquarePants interact with deepfakes of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

In a blog post on Friday, Altman stated the company is already planning two updates for Sora. The first will grant copyright holders "more granular control over character generation, similar to the opt-in model for likenesses but with additional controls."

The crucial term here is "opt-in," indicating OpenAI intends to prevent users from creating videos with copyrighted characters unless studios and other rights holders have explicitly granted Sora permission.

"We're hearing from many rights holders who are excited about this new form of 'interactive fan fiction' and believe this engagement will create significant value for them. However, they want the ability to specify how their characters are used, including opting out entirely," Altman said.

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Altman conceded that even with this new approach, there will likely be "some edge cases where generations slip through that shouldn't."

The second change he mentioned involves an unspecified form of video monetization. The company had previously stated its only monetization plan was to charge users for extra videos during peak demand. Altman's post expanded on this, acknowledging "we are going to have to somehow make money from video generation," and suggested revenue could be shared with rights holders.

"We hope this new form of engagement proves even more valuable than revenue sharing, but of course, we... want both to be valuable."