Media & Entertainment

Overview

Taking a leading role in helping entertainers reach their goals

The media and entertainment sectors are rapidly evolving, forcing industry players to innovate and reinvent their content offerings to remain competitive. However, as increased investment and content delivery revolutionize the media and entertainment industries, the expansion presents new risks to creative assets and business interests.

Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig works with clients in television, digital media, music, film, theater, publishing, and emerging media. Our law firm has a depth of experience that transcends sheer legal knowledge, honed by years of working within the media and entertainment industries.

Our experience in media and entertainment

Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig represents companies, groups, and individual performers in legal disputes and contractual matters. Our clients include indie bands, authors, directors, actors, studios, and producers of Academy Award-winning films.

Our multidisciplinary team delivers practical advice informed by industry experience. Our lawyers include former film and television producers who have worked on feature films, commercials, and television shows. Attorneys in our media and entertainment team, in addition to inside industry experience and IMDB credits, have been named to the “Power 100” list of U.S. entertainment lawyers by The Hollywood Reporter, participated on the AMC Network’s Sundance Film Festival TV panels, and have served as guest speakers at entertainment symposiums and workshops across the United States. They have also been involved in the music industry, including production, publishing, and podcasting.

DBL LEGAL SERVICES FOR CONTENT CREATORS & DISTRIBUTORS

DBL helps clients navigate the legal, regulatory, and contractual risks of creating and distributing content in an AI-driven world. In addition to vendor due diligence, IP clearance, transparency, and governance, we also advise on sensitive issues like biometric rights, privacy, and AI training data.

CATEGORIES OF SERVICES

Transactional Entertainment Law

Traditional Piracy (unauthorized reproduction and distribution of entire copyrighted works).

New Piracy / Copyright Infringement (unauthorized use of copyrighted works in AI training datasets)

Responsible Use of AI in Content Creation (ensuring use of AI tools to create content is done in compliance with applicable laws

Vendor & Model Due Diligence

Review vendor contracts to confirm lawful data sourcing and AI model training practices.
Negotiate warranties for compliance with copyright, data protection, and EU Text and data mining (TDM) opt-out rules.
Require disclosure of copyrighted corpora, paywalled sources, and proprietary datasets.
Draft indemnities for copyright claims, privacy breaches, or regulatory penalties.

Library & Asset Clearance

Confirm clear ownership (chain-of-title) for libraries and archives prior to AI adaptation.
Assess music, dubbing, performance, and artwork rights for reuse in new content.
Secure approvals for AI transformations, including dubbing, reanimation, and style transfer.

AI Content Labeling & Transparency

Implement clear on-screen labels for AI-generated or AI-modified scenes.
Embed metadata tags marking AI use into distributed media files.
Maintain audit logs to document when and where AI tools were used.

Similarity & Rights Checks

Conduct output-similarity screenings to detect regurgitation of training data.
Escalate flagged content for human legal review before release.

Rights-Holder Interaction

Create and manage takedown portals for rights-holders.
Draft service-level agreements (SLAs) for timely responses to complaints and inquiries.

Governance & Documentation

Maintain AI/IP Registers covering vendor contracts, dataset logs, and opt-out records.
Appoint AI Compliance Leads for EU AI Act and global regulatory readiness.
Ensure records are preserved for at least six years to meet audit requirements.

EU-Specific Launch Compliance

Conduct EU launch readiness assessments (transparency, labeling, rights-handling).
Provide formal EU compliance sign-off prior to distribution.

Biometric & AI Training Rights

AI/ML Training Consent – Draft and negotiate agreements authorizing or restricting the use of footage, images, or recordings containing identifiable members, guests, or staff to train or fine-tune AI/ML systems.
Biometric Data Protection – Ensure compliance with biometric data laws (e.g., Illinois BIPA, GDPR special categories). Require explicit written releases where biometric identifiers (faces, voices, fingerprints) are involved.
Privacy-by-Design Protocols – Establish internal protocols for anonymization or redaction before content is used in AI training.
Usage Restrictions – Draft contractual clauses prohibiting repurposing content for surveillance, biometric identification, or unauthorized AI model training.
Right of Publicity & Likeness – Secure waivers and releases for the commercial use of individual likenesses in AI-modified or AI-generated media.

Data Privacy & Cybersecurity Compliance

Cross-Border Data Transfers – Advise on GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and other laws governing transfer of personal data used in AI training or content personalization.
Incident Response – Draft protocols for responding to AI-related data breaches or model leaks.
Cyber Insurance Readiness – Align AI/ML practices with cyber insurance underwriting standards.

Content Distribution & Licensing

Streaming & Platform Licensing – Negotiate licenses for distributing AI-generated or AI-modified content across streaming, broadcast, and in-vehicle platforms.
Derivative Works – Clarify ownership and rights when AI produces adaptations of existing works.
International Distribution Compliance – Ensure AI content complies with jurisdiction-specific rules (e.g., China’s “deep synthesis” laws, EU AI Act).

Employment & Labor Law Issues

Talent Union & Guild Compliance – Address SAG-AFTRA, WGA, and music union rules on AI use in dubbing, voice replication, or reanimation.
Moral Rights & Performers’ Rights – Negotiate waivers or approvals where creators’ moral rights may be implicated by AI alterations.
Employment Contracts – Update employment and contractor agreements to define ownership of AI-assisted outputs

Advertising & Consumer Protection

Disclosure Rules – Ensure AI-generated advertising complies with FTC, ASA (UK), and EU marketing transparency rules.
Misrepresentation & Deceptive Practices – Draft disclaimers for synthetic endorsements, AI avatars, or virtual influencers.
Children’s Media Compliance – Advise on COPPA (U.S.) and AVMSD (EU) when AI content targets minors.
Litigation, Disputes & Enforcement
AI Content Infringement Defense – Represent clients in copyright or likeness disputes related to AI outputs.
Contract Enforcement – Pursue remedies for vendor breaches of AI/data use terms.
Regulatory Investigations – Defend companies in EU AI Act or FTC enforcement actions.