Graded Memo Fall Semester 2014, Number: 5632
Date: November 24, 2014
Re: Harald’s claim of vicarious infringement against Danktank, Inc.
I. Introduction On January 8, 2014, a user named HackManZAZ posted pictures of Erik Harald smoking marijuana to a message board on danktank.com, a website that advocates for the legalization of recreational marijuana. Harald took those pictures and uploaded them to the “cloud”. He believes a hacker stole the photos and uploaded them to danktank.com. Erik Harald stars in Mr. McSpike’s Time Travelling Trike, a family program on the Disney Channel. After the photos were posted, Harald was suspended indefinitely. This memorandum addresses whether Harald can fulfill the elements of his claim of vicarious infringement …show more content…
had a method in place before people could use its message boards. To post to the message boards of Danktank.com, a first-time user must register a username and password, and abide by the terms of use that Danktank lays out, including a right to blur content if users break rules laid out and the right to terminate users if they violate too many rules. For example, users cannot spam or write obscene language. Danktank, Inc. has enforced its rules regarding spam by terminating users before. Danktank, Inc.’s rights under the user agreement, including the right to terminate users for breaking rules, and right to blur posts for breaking rules, will likely lead a court to find that Danktank, Inc. had the right to supervise infringing …show more content…
Id. at 1011. When the site is used for the purpose it is designed for, users label MP3s and share them with other users. Id. at 1011-12. The court recognized that the premises that Napster controlled and patrolled were limited by the physical practicalities of a website structure. Id. at 1023. The court then recognized that Napster could use its search function to identify file name indices, which gave it adequate ability to find infringing content and remove it for the purpose of policing its premises. Id. at 1024. The court held that Napster’s failure to fully use its ability to police the premises constituted a threshold of inaction and a causal link to show vicarious liability. Id. at
Date: November 24, 2014
Re: Harald’s claim of vicarious infringement against Danktank, Inc.
I. Introduction On January 8, 2014, a user named HackManZAZ posted pictures of Erik Harald smoking marijuana to a message board on danktank.com, a website that advocates for the legalization of recreational marijuana. Harald took those pictures and uploaded them to the “cloud”. He believes a hacker stole the photos and uploaded them to danktank.com. Erik Harald stars in Mr. McSpike’s Time Travelling Trike, a family program on the Disney Channel. After the photos were posted, Harald was suspended indefinitely. This memorandum addresses whether Harald can fulfill the elements of his claim of vicarious infringement …show more content…
had a method in place before people could use its message boards. To post to the message boards of Danktank.com, a first-time user must register a username and password, and abide by the terms of use that Danktank lays out, including a right to blur content if users break rules laid out and the right to terminate users if they violate too many rules. For example, users cannot spam or write obscene language. Danktank, Inc. has enforced its rules regarding spam by terminating users before. Danktank, Inc.’s rights under the user agreement, including the right to terminate users for breaking rules, and right to blur posts for breaking rules, will likely lead a court to find that Danktank, Inc. had the right to supervise infringing …show more content…
Id. at 1011. When the site is used for the purpose it is designed for, users label MP3s and share them with other users. Id. at 1011-12. The court recognized that the premises that Napster controlled and patrolled were limited by the physical practicalities of a website structure. Id. at 1023. The court then recognized that Napster could use its search function to identify file name indices, which gave it adequate ability to find infringing content and remove it for the purpose of policing its premises. Id. at 1024. The court held that Napster’s failure to fully use its ability to police the premises constituted a threshold of inaction and a causal link to show vicarious liability. Id. at