Copyright Infringement

October 18, 2013

Aiuppy Sues Jeepers Dollhouse Miniatures for Infringing Copyrighted Photos

Indianapolis, Indiana – Laurance B. Aiuppy of Park County, Montana (“Aiuppy”) has sued Ufnowski Enterprises, LLC of Morgantown, Indiana (“Ufnowski”) d/b/a “Jeepers Dollhouse Miniatures” in the Southern District of Indiana alleging infringement of a copyrighted photograph or photographs which have been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office.

Plaintiff Aiuppy (also referred to in the complaint as “Plaintiff Auippy”) provides entertainment-related photojournalism goods and services featuring celebrities, which it licenses to online and print publications.

Defendant Ufnowski, which offers miniatures, dollhouses, and related accessories, is asserted to own and operate the website http://www.jeepersminiatures.com and to have copied, modified and displayed Aiuppy’s photograph or photographs on the Jeepers Dollhouse Miniatures website without Aiuppy’s permission. It is further contended that this conduct was knowing and in violation of U.S. copyright laws. The complaint also asserts that Ufnowski received a financial benefit directly attributable to the alleged infringement(s), and claims that as a result of the display of the photographs, the website had increased traffic and, in turn, realized an increase in their advertising revenues and/or merchandise sales.

The complaint, filed by the intellectual property counsel for Aiuppy, states the following claims:

· First Count: Direct Copyright Infringement, 17 U.S.C. § 501 et seq.

· Second Count: Contributory Copyright Infringement

· Third Count: Vicarious Copyright Infringement

· Fourth Count: Inducement of Copyright Infringement

· Fifth Count: Injunction Pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 502

· Sixth Count: Attorney Fees and Costs Pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 505

Aiuppy asks for a judgment that Ufnowski has infringed directly, contributorily and/or vicariously; for a judgment that Ufnowski has induced others to violate Aiuppy’s copyrighted photographs(s); for statutory damages against Ufnowski of $150,000 per infringement, or actual damages and Ufnowski’s profits; for a permanent injunction pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 502; and for attorneys’ fees and costs.

Practice Tip: As part of its complaint, Aiuppy has asserted that Ufnowski had “red flag” knowledge under 17 U.S.C. §512(c)(1)(A)(i) (sic) of the alleged infringements and yet failed to remove the allegedly infringing photographs. The “red flag” provision, codified as 17 U.S.C. §512(c)(1)(A)(ii), is part of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”).

Title II of the DMCA, separately titled the “Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act” (“OCILLA”), was designed to clarify the liability faced by service providers who transmit potentially infringing material over their networks.

But rather than embarking upon a wholesale clarification of various copyright doctrines, Congress elected to leave current law in its evolving state and, instead, to create a series of “safe harbors” for certain common activities of service providers. To that end, under 17 U.S.C. § 512(a)-(d), OCILLA established a series of four “safe harbors” that allow qualifying service providers to limit their liability for claims of copyright infringement based on (a) transitory digital network communications, (b) system caching, (c) information residing on systems or networks at [the] direction of users, and (d) information location tools.

To qualify for protection under any of the safe harbors, a party must meet a set of threshold criteria. First, the party must in fact be a “service provider,” defined, in pertinent part, as “a provider of online services or network access, or the operator of facilities therefor.” 17 U.S.C. § 512(k)(1)(B). A party that qualifies as a service provider must also satisfy certain “conditions of eligibility,” including the adoption and reasonable implementation of a “repeat infringer” policy that “provides for the termination in appropriate circumstances of subscribers and account holders of the service provider’s system or network.” Id. § 512(i)(1)(A). In addition, a qualifying service provider must accommodate “standard technical measures” that are “used by copyright owners to identify or protect copyrighted works.” Id. § 512(i)(1)(B), (i)(2).

Beyond the threshold criteria, a service provider must satisfy the requirements of a particular safe harbor. In this case, the safe harbor presumably at issue is § 512(c), which covers infringement claims that arise “by reason of the storage at the direction of a user of material that resides on a system or network controlled or operated by or for the service provider.” The § 512(c) safe harbor will apply only if the service provider:

(A) (i) does not have actual knowledge that the material or an activity using the material on the system or network is infringing;

(ii) in the absence of such actual knowledge, is not aware of facts or circumstances from which infringing activity is apparent; or

(iii) upon obtaining such knowledge or awareness, acts expeditiously to remove, or disable access to, the material;

(B) does not receive a financial benefit directly attributable to the infringing activity, in a case in which the service provider has the right and ability to control such activity; and

(C) upon notification of claimed infringement as described in paragraph (3), responds expeditiously to remove, or disable access to, the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity.

It is in § 512(c)(1)(A)(ii) that the so-called “red flag” knowledge exception to the safe harbor provision for service providers is found.

As the safe harbor acts as an affirmative defense, and the “red flag” knowledge, in turn, is available to defeat that defense, it is interesting that this seems to have been included in the complaint as part of the prima facie case against Ufnowski. Moreover, it will be interesting to see what use Plaintiff’s copyright attorney makes of this assertion, given that Ufnowski appears from the complaint to be a merchant of dollhouse miniatures, not an Internet service provider.

October 17, 2013

Another Fourteen Anonymous Defendants Accused of Infringing Robert Redford Movie

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Indianapolis, Indiana — Copyright lawyer Paul Nicoletti has sued fourteen additional Doe Defendants, all allegedly located in Indiana, in the Southern District of Indiana on behalf of TCYK, LLC of Los Angeles, California (“TCYK”) alleging infringement of the copyrighted movie “The Company You Keep,” which has been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office. The movie stars Robert Redford, Susan Sarandon, Shia LaBeouf, Anna Kendrick, Julie Christie and Nick Nolte. It was directed by Robert Redford.

TCYK alleges that the infringing transfer and copying of this movie, which was released on DVD on August 13, 2013, was accomplished by Defendants using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing protocol. Specifically, the Doe Defendants are accused of deliberately participating in a peer-to-peer “swarm,” and illegally reproducing and/or distributing portions of the movie in digital form with other Defendants. TCYK indicates in its complaint that it used geolocation technology to determine that the Doe Defendants were located in Indiana.

The complaint lists a single count: copyright infringement. The intellectual property attorney for Plaintiff TCYK asks the court for permanent injunctions prohibiting infringement of Plaintiff’s movie by all Doe Defendants; the destruction of all copies of infringing works in any Defendant’s control; judgment that Defendants have willfully infringed Plaintiff’s copyrighted work; judgment that Defendants have otherwise injured the business reputation and business of Plaintiffs; for actual damages or statutory damages; and for attorneys’ fees and litigation expenses.

Practice Tip:

Under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c)(1), a copyright owner may elect actual or statutory damages. Statutory damages range from a sum of not less than $750 to not more than $30,000 per infringed work. The determination of the exact amount is left to the discretion of the court.

If a defendant fails to appear, the court will take as true all of the plaintiff’s well-pled allegations. That typically leads to a default judgment against the defendant. There is a significant disparity in the dollar amounts awarded in default judgments against defendants in copyright infringement cases involving BitTorrent. In two separate cases, Judge William T. Lawrence recently ordered two defendants who failed to appear to pay $20,000 in statutory damages for copyright infringement that was deemed to have been admitted by the defendants’ failure to defend against the allegations. See here and here. However, in a similar case, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson ordered an entry of default judgment against a defendant for $151,425. Judge Sarah Evans Barker has issued several default judgments for $36,000 plus attorneys’ fees against BitTorrent defendants who failed to appear.

October 11, 2013

Copyright Infringement Using BitTorrent Asserted, Judgment of $38,645 Granted Against Defendant Who Failed to Appear

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Indianapolis, Indiana — Judge Sarah Evans Barker of the Southern District of Indiana has entered a default judgment for copyright infringement in favor of Malibu Media, LLC of Los Angeles, California. The copyrighted works at issue had been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office.

In June 2012, copyright attorney Paul Nicoletti filed another copyright infringement lawsuit in the Southern District of Indiana on behalf of serial plaintiff Malibu Media. The lawsuit listed multiple defendants, including William Meeks Sr. of Decatur, Indiana. In its complaint, Malibu Media alleged that Meeks had infringed 16 copyrighted works. Specifically, Malibu Media contended that Meeks and others directly and contributorily infringed its copyrighted works when they downloaded and disseminated all or a portion of the works using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing protocol. The initial complaint was served upon 23 defendants. Discussed in this opinion are the allegations, findings and judgments against Meeks only.

Judge Barker held that, as a result of his failure to defend against Malibu Media’s assertions, Meeks was deemed to have admitted to willful copyright infringement. Judge Barker also held that, without an injunction, Meeks’ use of the BitTorrent protocol would continue to cause Malibu Media irreparable injury, stating that there existed a “threat of continued violations” of Malibu Media’s exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, perform and display the 16 copyrighted works.

The court entered a permanent injunction against Meeks after finding that such an injunction promoted creativity and individual effort and was therefore in the public interest. Meeks was also ordered to pay to Malibu Media $36,000.00 in statutory damages, as authorized under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c)(1), and $2,645.00 for attorneys’ fees and costs, as authorized under 17 U.S.C. § 505, for a total of $38,645.00. He was further ordered to pay post-judgment interest accruing under 28 U.S.C. § 1961 as of the date of the default judgment until the date of its satisfaction. Finally, Meeks was ordered to destroy all copies of Malibu Media’s works that he had downloaded onto any computer hard drive without proper authorization, including all copies that he had in his possession, custody or control.

Practice Tip #1:

Under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c)(1), a copyright owner may elect actual or statutory damages. Statutory damages range from a sum of not less than $750 to not more than $30,000 per infringed work. The determination of the exact amount is left to the discretion of the court.

There is a significant disparity in the dollar amount awarded in default judgments against defendants in copyright infringement cases involving BitTorrent. In two separate cases, Judge William T. Lawrence recently ordered two defendants who failed to appear to pay $20,000 in statutory damages for copyright infringement that was deemed to have been admitted by the defendants’ failure to defend against the allegations. See here and here. However, in a similar case, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson ordered an entry of default judgment against a defendant for $151,425. Judge Barker has issued several prior default judgments in this case, each for $36,000 plus attorneys’ fees.

Practice Tip #2:

Deciding to simply ignore a complaint, as William Meeks Sr. apparently did, can be a costly error. Failing to present the defendant’s version of the facts and arguments results in the court considering only the plaintiff’s side of the story. Here, because the defendant chose to leave the complaint unanswered, the well-pled allegations of the plaintiff relating to liability were taken as true.

After the entry of default judgment, the court then conducted an inquiry to ascertain the amount of damages with “reasonable certainty.” Again, in such circumstances, it serves a defendant well to plead his case — to present the court with reasons that the plaintiff should not get 100% of what he requests.

Overhauser Law Offices, the publisher of this website, has represented several hundred persons and businesses regarding copyright infringement and similar matters.

October 4, 2013

Malibu Media Files Seven New Copyright Infringement Lawsuits Against John Doe Defendants

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Indianapolis, Indiana — An intellectual property attorney has filed seven new copyright suits in the Southern District of Indiana on behalf of Malibu Media, LLC of Los Angeles, California alleging that seven John Doe defendants infringed Malibu Media’s copyrighted works.

Copyright lawyer Paul Nicoletti is again in federal court on behalf of Malibu Media asserting infringement of the company’s intellectual property. In this current round, Malibu Media’s latest incursion into the federal court system, seven new and nearly identical lawsuits have been filed against anonymous John Doe defendants, each claiming copyright infringement. The Defendants allegedly used the BitTorrent file-sharing protocol to illegally download, copy and distribute elements of various works of Malibu Media’s copyrighted material.

Malibu Media seeks a permanent injunction barring the Defendants from engaging in infringing activities; an order by the court to remove infringing materials from all computers of each Defendant; an award of statutory damages of $150,000 per infringed work and reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs.

Practice Tip: There is a significant disparity in the dollar amount awarded in default judgments against defendants in copyright infringement cases involving BitTorrent. In two separate cases, Judge William T. Lawrence recently ordered two defendants who failed to appear to pay $20,000 for the copyright infringement that was deemed to have been admitted by the defendants’ failure to defend against the allegations. See here and here. However, in a similar case, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson ordered an entry of default judgment against a defendant for $151,425, the full amount requested.

September 19, 2013

TCYK Sues Nine John Doe Defendants for Copyright Infringement of “The Company You Keep”

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Hammond, Indiana — Copyright lawyers for TCYK LLC of Los Angeles, CA sued for copyright infringement in the Northern District of Indiana alleging that John Does 1-9, all allegedly located in Indiana, infringed the copyrighted work “The Company You Keep,” which has been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office.

The movie stars Robert Redford, Susan Sarandon, Shia LaBeouf, Anna Kendrick, Julie Christie and Nick Nolte. It was directed by Robert Redford. TCYK alleges that the infringing transfer and copying of this movie, which was released on DVD on August 13, 2013, was accomplished by Defendants using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing protocol. Specifically, the Doe Defendants are accused of deliberately participating in a peer-to-peer “swarm,” and illegally reproducing and/or distributing portions of the movie in digital form with other Defendants. TCYK indicates in its complaint that it used geolocation technology to determine that the Doe Defendants were located in Indiana.

The complaint lists a single count of copyright infringement. Copyright attorneys for Plaintiff ask the court for permanent injunctions prohibiting infringement of Plaintiff’s movie; the destruction of all copies of infringing works in any Defendant’s control; judgment that Defendants have willfully infringed Plaintiff’s copyrighted work; judgment that Defendants have otherwise injured the business reputation and business of Plaintiffs; for actual damages or statutory damages; and for attorneys’ fees and litigation expenses.

Practice Tip #1: The impact of distributing large files on servers and networks can be reduced by using BitTorrent. Instead of downloading a file from a single server, the BitTorrent protocol allows users to join a “swarm” of hosts, each of which downloads and uploads data from the others simultaneously.

Practice Tip #2: TCYK has filed dozens of lawsuits in federal courts claiming copyright infringement of “The Company You Keep”, including courts in Indiana, Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. It is estimated that thousands of defendants have been sued by TCYK on the allegation that they have infringed this copyrighted work. TCYK is also featured in an interesting article on the growing practice of using the court system to monetize infringement committed by individual infringers.

Practice Tip #3: It is curious that apparently neither the filing fee nor form AO 121 (Report on the Filing or Determination of an Action or Appeal Regarding a Copyright) was submitted to the court in conjunction with the filing of this complaint.

September 6, 2013

Texas Roadhouse Sues Multiple Restaurants Operating as “Texas Corral” or “Amarillo Roadhouse”

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Grand Rapids, Michigan — Trademark lawyers for Texas Roadhouse, Inc. and Texas Roadhouse Delaware LLC, both of Louisville, Kentucky (collectively, “Texas Roadhouse”) sued for trademark infringement in the Western District of Michigan alleging that the Defendants, including those doing business as multiple Texas Corral restaurants located in Indiana (collectively “Texas Corral”), as well as one Amarillo Roadhouse restaurant, also located in Indiana, infringed the service mark TEXAS ROADHOUSE, Trademark Registration Nos. 1,833,533; 2,231,309; and 2,250,966, which have been registered by the U.S. Trademark Office.

Texas Roadhouse operates a Texas-themed restaurant chain. The first Texas Roadhouse restaurant opened in Clarksville, Indiana in 1993. As of March 2013, there were 397 Texas Roadhouse restaurants in 47 states and three countries.

Texas Roadhouse contends that each of the restaurants is required to comply with strict exterior and interior design requirements so that the look and feel is substantially identical across all Texas Roadhouse locations. It lists three U.S. Service Mark Registrations that include the mark “Texas Roadhouse” and asserts that each of them is incontestable. Texas Roadhouse also claims ownership of various unregistered marks that include the word “Texas” and “Roadhouse” as well as copyright protection, including a U.S. Copyright registration, of its marquee. Finally, Texas Roadhouse claims intellectual-property rights in the trade dress of its restaurants, including the look of the exterior design of the building, the interior décor, the music and the menu.

Texas Corral, against which Texas Roadhouse filed this complaint, also operates casual, western-themed, family restaurants. It owns and operates nine restaurant locations doing business under the name “Texas Corral.” A total of ten locations are at issue in this lawsuit. Six Indiana cities have “Texas Corral” restaurants: Highland, Merrillville, Portage, Michigan City, Martinsville and Shelbyville. Texas Corral also purportedly owns and operates a location that does business as “Amarillo Roadhouse” in Indiana, which is also at issue in this trademark-infringement lawsuit. In addition, three other Texas Corral restaurants have been listed in the complaint: two in Michigan and one in Illinois.

Also listed in the complaint are Paul Switzer, asserted to be the franchisor/licensor of Texas Corral restaurants and Victor Spina, asserted to be a franchisee/licensee. “John Doe Corp.,” a fictitious name intended to represent entities or individuals whose actual identity is not currently known to Texas Roadhouse, is also listed as a Defendant.

In the complaint, trademark attorneys for Texas Roadhouse assert that Texas Corral and Amarillo Roadhouse routinely use trade dress, trademarks, service marks, trade names, designs or logos that are confusingly similar to or copies of intellectual property owned by Texas Roadhouse. This purportedly infringing use is asserted to be visible in signage, print and electronic promotional materials, menus, décor, building design and websites.

Texas Roadhouse’s complaint against Texas Corral and Amarillo Roadhouse lists the following:

· Count I: Trade Dress Infringement

· Count II: Federal Trademark Infringement

· Count III: Trademark Infringement Under Mich. Comp. Laws § 429.42

· Count IV: Trademark Infringement Under Ind. Code § 24-2-1-13

· Count V: Trademark Infringement Under Common Law

· Count VI: Copyright Infringement Under 17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq.

· Count VII: Unfair Competition Under Michigan and Indiana Common Law

Texas Roadhouse asks for a judgment that Texas Roadhouse owns enforceable rights in the Texas Roadhouse intellectual property and that all registrations for the Texas Roadhouse intellectual property are valid; a judgment that the Defendants have been and are directly or indirectly infringing the Texas Roadhouse intellectual property; a judgment that the Defendants have been and are engaging in unfair competition by their unauthorized use of the Texas Roadhouse intellectual property; a judgment that Defendants acted deliberately, willfully, intentionally or with malicious intent; an injunction against Defendants prohibiting infringement; damages, including treble damages; a judgment that this case is exceptional and that the Defendants be ordered to pay all of Texas Roadhouse’s attorney fees associated with this action pursuant to 15 U.S.C. § 1117 and 17 U.S.C. § 505; and a judgment that the defendants be ordered to pay all costs and expenses incurred by Texas Roadhouse in this action.

Practice Tip:

The U.S. Supreme Court has addressed the requirements for trade dress protection in a similar context. Two Pesos, Inc. v. Taco Cabana, Inc., 505 U.S. 763 (1992). At issue in Two Pesos was similar restaurant décor. Taco Cabana had sued rival Two Pesos for copying the look of its restaurant, described as “a festive eating atmosphere having interior dining and patio areas decorated with artifacts, bright colors, paintings and murals. The patio includes interior and exterior areas with the interior patio capable of being sealed off from the outside patio by overhead garage doors. The stepped exterior of the building is a festive and vivid color scheme using top border paint and neon stripes. Bright awnings and umbrellas continue the theme.” The lawsuit alleged that Two Pesos had imitated this scheme and had thereby infringed on Taco Cabana’s trade dress. Among the issues considered was whether trade dress which was inherently distinctive must also be shown to have secondary meaning to be granted protection under the Lanham Act. The Supreme Court held that trade dress which is inherently distinctive is protectable under § 43(a) of the Lanham Act without a showing that it has acquired secondary meaning, since such trade dress itself is capable of identifying products or services as coming from a specific source.

Also at issue in this case, among other matters, will be the eligibility of the words “Texas” and “Roadhouse” for protection under federal and Indiana intellectual-property laws. Under the Lanham Act, a federal law, the holder of a mark may ask the United States Patent and Trademark Office to register the mark on the principal register. 15 U.S.C.A. § 1051, et seq. Marks that are “primarily descriptive” and “primarily geographically descriptive” of the goods or services with which they are associated are not eligible for registration on the principal register unless they have “become distinctive of the applicant’s goods in commerce.” 15 U.S.C.A. § 1052(e), (f). Thus, registration of a descriptive mark on the principal register requires a showing of secondary meaning.

Although the Lanham Act protects both registered and unregistered marks, registration is desirable because it constitutes prima facie evidence of the mark’s validity. See 15 U.S.C.A. §§ 1057(b), 1115(a). Thus, federal registration of a mark “‘entitles the plaintiff to a presumption that its registered trademark is not merely descriptive or generic, or, if merely descriptive, is accorded secondary meaning.'” The plaintiff bears the burden, however, of establishing that an unregistered mark is entitled to protection.

The Indiana Trademark Act is similar, and in some respects identical, to the Lanham Act. Although Indiana’s body of trademark law is relatively undeveloped, the General Assembly has specified that the Indiana Trademark Act “is intended to provide a system of state trademark registration and protection that is consistent with the federal system of trademark registration and protection under the Trademark Act of 1946.” Ind. Code Ann. § 24-2-1-0.5. Moreover, “[a] judicial or an administrative interpretation of a provision of the federal Trademark Act may be considered as persuasive authority in construing a provision of the Indiana Trademark Act.

The Indiana Trademark Act’s definitions of “trademark” and “service mark” track the Lanham Act’s definitions of those terms nearly verbatim. See I.C. § 24-2-1-2(8), (9). Like the Lanham Act, the Indiana Trademark Act does not adversely affect common-law trademark rights. See I.C. § 24-2-1-15. Registration of a trademark or service mark with the office of the Indiana Secretary of State provides a registrant with a remedy for the infringement thereof under the Indiana Trademark Act. I.C. § 24-2-1-14(a). Like the Lanham Act, the Indiana Trademark Act prohibits the registration of marks that are “primarily geographically descriptive or deceptively geographically misdescriptive of the goods or services[.]” I.C. § 24-2-1-3. This provision does not, however, prevent the registration of a mark that is used in Indiana by the applicant and has become distinctive of the applicant’s goods or services. In other words, a geographically descriptive mark may be registered under the Indiana Trademark Act if it has acquired secondary meaning.
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September 5, 2013

Common Themes Between Elton John’s “Nikita” and Hobbs’ “Natasha” Insufficient to Support Claim of Copyright Infringement

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Chicago, Illinois – The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has affirmed the judgment of the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. Copyright lawyers for Guy Hobbs of the United Kingdom had sued alleging copyright infringement by Elton John and Bernie Taupin of the United Kingdom of Hobbs’ copyrighted work “Natasha” which has been registered in the United Kingdom. The district court dismissed the complaint and the appellate court affirmed.

While working on a Russian cruise ship, Hobbs composed a song entitled “Natasha” that was inspired by a brief love affair he had with a Russian waitress. He tried to publish his song, but was unsuccessful. A few years later, John and Taupin released a song entitled “Nikita” through a publishing company to which Hobbs had sent a copy of “Natasha.” Believing that “Nikita” was based upon “Natasha,” Hobbs eventually demanded compensation from John and Taupin. He ultimately filed suit asserting a copyright infringement claim and two related state-law claims. The Defendants asked the district court to dismiss Hobbs’ complaint for failure to state a claim.

In supporting his claim for copyright infringement in the district court, Hobbs asserted both traditional copyright infringement of individual elements of “Natasha” and also copyright infringement based upon “Natasha” as a combination of similar elements that would be unprotectable individually.

After considering Hobbs’ first argument of copyright infringement, the district court concluded that the elements identified were not entitled to copyright protection when considered alone.

Hobbs’ second legal theory to support a claim of copyright infringement was that the unique selection, arrangement, and combination of individually unprotectable elements in a song could be entitled to copyright protection. The district court also rejected Hobbs’ “unique combination” argument because it interpreted the law, as stated in Peters v. West, 692 F.3d 629, 632 (7th Cir. 2012), to preclude Hobbs’ copyright infringement claim based upon a combination of similar elements that are unprotectable individually. Despite rejecting Hobbs’ “unique combination” argument in this set of circumstances as an impermissible application of copyright law, the district court nevertheless considered the facts under this theory.

In defending his “unique combination” theory, Hobbs identified a number of allegedly similar elements between the two songs. He argued that his selection and combination of those elements in “Natasha” constituted a unique expression entitled to copyright protection, and that the Defendants’ similar use of those elements in “Nikita” supported a claim for copyright infringement. Hobbs identified the following allegedly similar elements that are found in both songs:

· A theme of impossible love between a Western man and a Communist woman during the Cold War;

· References to events that never happened;

· Descriptions of the beloved’s light eyes;

· References to written correspondence to the beloved;

· Repetition of the beloved’s name, the word “never,” the phrase “to hold you,” the phrase “I need you,” and some form of the phrase “you will never know”; and

· A title which is a one-word, phonetically-similar title consisting of a three-syllable female Russian name, both beginning with the letter “N” and ending with the letter “A.”

The district court held that the similar elements, even when considered under the “unique combination” theory, still could not support a claim for copyright infringement. It also concluded that the Copyright Act preempted Hobbs’ state-law claims.

The sole issue for appeal was Hobbs’ “unique combination” theory. The Seventh Circuit held that Hobbs failed to state a claim for copyright infringement because, even when the allegedly similar elements between the songs were considered in combination, “Natasha” and “Nikita” did not share enough unique features to give rise to a breach of the duty not to copy another’s work. It held that, although both songs contained the idea of an impossible love affair due to a conflict, each song expressed this general idea differently. That is, “Natasha” and “Nikita” tell different stories about impossible romances during the Cold War. Thus, as a matter of law, they were not substantially similar and the dismissal of Hobbs’ claim for copyright infringement was affirmed.

Practice Tip #1:

The Seventh Circuit declined to decide whether Hobbs was correct when he argued that a unique selection, arrangement, and combination of individually unprotectable elements in a song can support a copyright infringement claim. Instead, careful review of both songs’ lyrics reveals that Hobbs’ first four allegedly similar elements are expressed differently in “Natasha” and “Nikita.” The remaining similar elements were standard fare in popular love songs and, thus, could not serve to serve as evidence that infringement had occurred.

Practice Tip #2:

The Copyright Act does not protect general ideas, but only the particular expression of an idea. Additionally, even at the level of particular expression, the Copyright Act does not protect incidents, characters or settings which are as a practical matter indispensable, or at least standard, in the treatment of a given topic.

However, there is a wealth of authority recognizing that, in certain situations, a unique arrangement of individually unprotectable elements can form an original expression entitled to copyright protection. See Feist Publ’ns, Inc. v. Rural Tel. Serv. Co., 499 U.S. 340, 362 (1991) (“The question that remains is whether [the plaintiff] selected, coordinated, or arranged these uncopyrightable facts in an original way.”); JCW Invs., Inc. v. Novelty, Inc., 482 F.3d 910, 917 (7^th Cir. 2007) (“[T]he very combination of these [unprotectable] elements as well as the expression that is [the work itself] are creative.”); Bucklew v. Hawkins, Ash, Baptie & Co., 329 F.3d 923, 929 (7th Cir. 2003) (“[I]t is the combination of [unprotectable] elements, or particular novel twists given to them, that supply the minimal originality required for copyright protection.”); Roulo v. Russ Berrie & Co., 886 F.2d 931, 939 (7th Cir. 1989) (“While it is true that these elements are not individually capable of protection, just as individual words do not deserve copyright protection, it is the unique combination of these common elements which form the copyrighted material.”); see also Stava v. Lowry, 323 F.3d 805, 811 (9th Cir. 2003) (“It is true, of course, that a combination of unprotectable elements may qualify for copyright protection.”); Knitwaves, Inc. v. Lollytogs Ltd., 71 F.3d 996, 1003-04 (2d Cir. 1995) (“As the Supreme Court’s decision in [Feist] makes clear, a work may be copyrightable even though it is entirely a compilation of unprotectible elements.”).

Practice Tip #3:

Although Hobbs brought his action twenty-seven years after “Nikita” was authored and eleven years after Hobbs allegedly first encountered “Nikita,” the Defendants did not raise the three-year statute of limitations, see 17 U.S.C. § 507(b), as a defense in their motion to dismiss.

August 28, 2013

Another BitTorrent Defendant Ordered to Pay $20,000 in Default Judgment

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Indianapolis, Indiana – The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has granted a motion by Malibu Media of Los Angeles, California for default judgment against Kenny Griffith for infringement of the copyrighted work “Slow Motion” which has been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office.

In its complaint, Malibu Media alleged that Griffith and others directly and contributorily infringed its copyrighted work when they downloaded and disseminated without authorization, all or a portion of a movie owned by Malibu Media titled “Slow Motion” using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file sharing protocol. The initial complaint was served upon eight defendants but was later severed. Discussed in this opinion are the allegations, findings and judgments against Griffith only.

Malibu Media served Griffith with a summons and complaint on January 5, 2013. He did not respond. On April 1, 2013, default was entered as to Griffith by Southern District of Indiana Judge William T. Lawrence. By virtue of this entry of default, it was established as a factual matter that Griffith had uploaded and downloaded all or a portion of the copyrighted work without authorization, and had also enabled countless unknown others to obtain the work in the process.

In the current default-judgment opinion, the court addressed requests by copyright attorneys for Malibu Media for two separate injunctions, for damages, for attorney’s fees and for costs.

The first injunction sought injunctive relief pursuant to 17 U.S.C. §§ 502 and 503. The court noted that, under § 503(b), a court may order the destruction of all copies made or used in violation of the copyright owner’s exclusive rights. Given the nature of the infringement that occurred in this case — participating in a “swarm” and downloading and uploading copyrighted work — the court found that this injunction was particularly appropriate.

The second injunction sought asked the court to prohibit Griffith “from directly, contributorily or indirectly infringing [Malibu Media’s] rights under federal or state law in the Work, including, without limitation, by using the internet, BitTorrent or any other online media distribution system to reproduce (e.g., download) or distribute the Works, or to make the Work available for distribution to the public, except pursuant to a lawful license or with the express authority of [Malibu Media].” The court held that such an injunction was simply a mandate that Griffith follow copyright laws and that the injunction was therefore unnecessary.

The court also denied Malibu Media’s request for attorney’s fees and costs, noting that the fees submitted seemed to reflect legal work done not only in the furtherance of the lawsuit against Griffith, but also seemed to pertain to other related lawsuits involving the previously joined defendants. As a result of these ambiguities, the court denied Malibu Media’s request for costs and attorney’s fees but indicated that it would be willing to entertain such motions — for attorney’s fees incurred as to Griffith only — upon the entry of final judgments as to all defendants in related cases.

Finally, Malibu Media sought statutory damages in the amount of $20,000. The court cited “Congress’s recognition of the ‘disturbing trend’ of internet piracy” and found that amount to be just under the circumstances.

Practice Tip:

Deciding to simply ignore a complaint, as Kenny Griffith apparently did, can be a costly error. Failing to present the defendant’s version of the facts and arguments results in the court considering only the plaintiff’s side of the story. Here, because the defendant chose to leave the complaint unanswered, the well-pled allegations of the plaintiff relating to liability were taken as true.

After the entry of default judgment, the court then conducted an inquiry to ascertain the amount of damages with “reasonable certainty.” Again, in such circumstances, it serves a defendant well to plead his case — to present the court with reasons that the plaintiff should not get 100% of what he requests.

Under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c)(1), a copyright owner may elect actual or statutory damages. Statutory damages range from a sum of not less than $750 to not more than $30,000. The determination of the exact amount is left to the discretion of the court. In this case, Malibu Media asked the court for $20,000 and the court, having no arguments from the defendant to suggest that this was excessive, granted the entire amount.

Overhauser Law Offices, the publisher of this website, has represented several hundred persons and businesses regarding copyright infringement and similar matters.

August 22, 2013

U.S. Department of Commerce Produces Comprehensive Analysis Addressing Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Commerce recently released a green paper on Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy (the “Green Paper“) to advance discussion on a set of policy issues critical to economic growth. The Green Paper discusses the goals of maintaining an appropriate balance between rights and exceptions as the law continues to be updated; ensuring that copyright can be meaningfully enforced on the Internet; and furthering the development of an efficient online marketplace.

The Green Paper is the most thorough and comprehensive analysis of digital copyright policy issued by any administration since 1995. The report is a product of the Department of Commerce’s Internet Policy Task Force (“IPTF”) with input from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”). Through the IPTF, the USPTO and NTIA will solicit further public comments and convene roundtables and forums on a number of key policy issues.

“Copyright law strikes a number of important balances in delineating what is protectable and what is not, determining what uses are permitted without a license, and establishing appropriate enforcement mechanisms to combat piracy, so that all stakeholders benefit from the protection afforded by copyright,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. “Ensuring that our copyright policy provides incentives for creativity while promoting innovation on the Internet is a critical and challenging task. The Green Paper released today is an important step toward ensuring that the United States’ creative industries continue to have a substantial impact on strengthening our nation’s economy.”

Copyright has been a vital contributor to U.S. cultural and economic development for more than two hundred years, fostering the production and dissemination of the valuable expression that has put America at the forefront of the global creative marketplace. Maintaining a balanced and effective copyright system should continue to drive the production of creative works while at the same time preserving the innovative power of the Internet and the free flow of information. The Green Paper provides a comprehensive review of current policy related to copyright and the Internet, and identifies important issues that call for attention and development of solutions. The solutions may entail a combination of legal remedies, technology, private sector cooperation, and public outreach and education, along with the continued development of options to legally access copyrighted works.

In the Green Paper, the IPTF proposes the following actions:

· Establishing a multi-stakeholder dialogue on improving the operation of the notice and takedown system under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”).

· Soliciting public comment and convening roundtables on:

o The legal framework for the creation of remixes;

o The relevance and scope of the first-sale doctrine in the digital environment;

o The application of statutory damages in the context of individual file-sharers and secondary liability for large-scale online infringement;

o The appropriate role for the government, if any, to help improve the online licensing environment, including access to comprehensive public and private databases of rights information.

“Copyright protection is a foundation for creative services and products that drive a significant part of the U.S. economy,” said Acting Under Secretary for Intellectual Property and Acting USPTO Director Teresa Stanek Rea. “The Internet must continue to support a legitimate market for copyrighted works as well as provide a platform for innovation and the introduction of new and dynamic services that drive digital commerce.”

“We see a digital future in which the relationship among digital technology, the Internet, and creative industries becomes increasingly symbiotic,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and NTIA Administrator Lawrence E. Strickling. “In this digital future, the rights of creators and copyright owners are appropriately protected; creative industries continue to make their substantial contributions to the nation’s economic competitiveness; online service providers continue to expand the variety and quality of their offerings; technological innovation continues to thrive; and consumers have access to the broadest possible range of creative content.”

The Green Paper reiterates the Administration’s support for legislation creating a public performance right for the broadcasting of sound recordings and enabling prosecutors to seek felony penalties for unauthorized streaming to the public. It supports congressional or regulatory attention to determine how best to rationalize rate-setting standards for different types of music services; reform music licensing, particularly the mechanical license for musical compositions; and ensure consumers can unlock their cell phones, subject to applicable service agreements. It supports the U.S. Copyright Office’s work to address the problems of orphan works and mass digitization, consider possible small-claims procedures, update the statutory exception for libraries, and improve public registration and recordation systems. The Green Paper also supports and encourages enhancing public education and outreach efforts.

With respect to the difficulties in enforcement against websites dedicated to infringement, the Green Paper encourages ongoing voluntary initiatives, such as those facilitated by the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (“IPEC”), that benefit all parties and are consistent with the principles of privacy, free speech, competition, and due process, and states that the IPTF will follow these developments and assess their impact in order to determine whether additional action is needed. The USPTO has also extended its request for comments regarding the processes, data metrics, and methodologies that could be used to assess the effectiveness of cooperative agreements and other voluntary initiatives to reduce intellectual property infringement. This comment solicitation is part of the Administration’s 2013 Joint Strategic Plan for Intellectual Property Enforcement.

Then-Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke launched the IPTF in April 2010, bringing together the USPTO and NTIA, as well as the International Trade Administration (“ITA”), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (“NIST”), and the Economic and Statistic Administration (“ESA”) to conduct a comprehensive review of privacy policy, copyright, global free flow of information, cybersecurity, and their respective relationships to innovation in the Internet economy. In preparing the Green Paper, USPTO and NTIA held more than a dozen listening sessions with interested stakeholders, convened a symposium, received hundreds of public comments, and reviewed comments submitted to other agencies on relevant topics. The IPTF will consider feedback it receives from public comments, roundtables and forums to determine how the current copyright framework can be improved to serve creators, right holders, service providers, consumers, innovation, and national economic goals.

The Green Paper can be found online at: http://www.uspto.gov/news/publications/copyrightgreenpaper.pdf.

Practice Tip: Among the issues to be considered as part of this initiative, public comment will be solicited regarding the application of statutory damages in the context of individual file-sharers. This subject has created a considerable range of response from the judiciary. On one end of the spectrum are opinions, for example, one citing a “disturbing trend of internet piracy“ and another which assessed statutory damages of $150,000 in an illegal-downloading case in which the defendant did not appear to answer the allegations of infringement.

On the other end of the spectrum are opinions such as Judge Otis Wright’s scathing indictment of copyright trolls. In Judge Wright’s opinion, he details the abuse of the legal process committed under the authority of The Copyright Act. In the now-famous “Star Trek”-themed order, Judge Wright began by opining, “Plaintiffs have outmaneuvered the legal system. They’ve discovered the nexus of antiquated copyright laws, paralyzing social stigma, and unaffordable defense costs. And they exploit this anomaly by accusing individuals of illegally downloading a single pornographic video. Then they offer to settle–for a sum calculated to be just below the cost of a bare-bones defense. For these individuals, resistance is futile; most reluctantly pay rather than have their names associated with illegally downloading porn. So now, copyright laws originally designed to compensate starving artists allow, starving attorneys in this electronic-media era to plunder the citizenry.”

Among other measures in this case, the Court awards attorney’s fees and costs in the sum of $40,659.86 to the defendant. It then, as a punitive measure, doubled the award, yielding $81,319.72.

Judge Wright later concluded with an explanation for the sanctions which he was imposing against the attorneys in the case, “though Plaintiffs boldly probe the outskirts of law, the only enterprise they resemble is RICO. The federal agency eleven decks up is familiar with their prime directive and will gladly refit them for their next voyage. The Court will refer this matter to the United States Attorney for the Central District of California. The will also refer this matter to the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service and will notify all judges before whom these attorneys have pending cases. For the sake of completeness, the Court requests [defense counsel] to assist by filing a report, within 14 days, containing contact information for: (1) every bar (state and federal) where these attorneys are admitted to practice; and (2) every judge before whom these attorneys have pending cases.”

August 21, 2013

Judgment of $151,425 Granted Against Defendant Who Failed to Answer Allegations of Illegal Downloading of Pornography

By Overhauser Law Offices, LLC

Indianapolis, Indiana — The Southern District of Indiana has granted a motion for default judgment by CP Productions, Inc. (“CP”) of Arizona, which had sued Gerald L. Glover, III (“Glover”) of Indianapolis, Indiana alleging infringement of the copyrighted work “GH Hustlers — Maryjane’s Second Visit” which has been registered by the U.S. Copyright Office.

CP produces adult-entertainment content. Copyright lawyers for CP filed suit in the Southern District of Indiana alleging that Glover and his joint tortfeasors, without Plaintiff’s authorization or license, downloaded CP’s copyrighted work via the Internet. Specifically, it was alleged that they had, knowingly and illegally, reproduced and distributed CP’s copyrighted creative work, and materially contributed to the infringing conduct of others by acting in concert via the BitTorrent file-sharing protocol. CP also alleged that Glover was a serial infringer of copyrights in adult content stating that agents for CP had observed him infringing on multiple copyrighted works involving adult content.

In the complaint, CP’s attorneys listed counts of copyright infringement, civil conspiracy and contributory infringement. CP sought statutory damages of $150,000 under the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 504 for Glover’s alleged willful infringement of CP’s copyright. CP also asked the court for attorneys’ fees and costs of $1,425 under 17 U.S.C. § 505, for a total judgment of $151,425. Glover did not respond to the complaint.

Because he had failed to plead or otherwise defend in this action, despite having been properly served with a summons and a complaint, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson ordered an entry of default against Glover for $151,425, the full amount requested.

Practice Tip: When a defendant fails to appear to address assertions of wrongdoing made by a plaintiff, the court takes as true all of the plaintiff’s well-pled allegations. On Friday, we blogged about a default-judgment case wherein the defendant was ordered by the court to pay $20,000 for illegally downloading copyrighted material. As the Glover case shows, however, damages for illegally downloading copyrighted material can be much higher.