Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 99.4.124.9

Background

Strike 3 Holdings, LLC alleged that a person using IP address 99.4.124.9 downloaded and distributed 48 of Strike 3’s copyrighted adult motion pictures through BitTorrent. Strike 3 said it owned registered copyrights in the movies and that its infringement-detection system made direct connections with the IP address and downloaded files identified by the BitTorrent information hash. Strike 3 had not been able to identify the individual associated with the IP address.

Strike 3 filed one copyright-infringement claim against John Doe and sought permission to serve a subpoena on nonparty AT&T U-verse, the internet service provider associated with the IP address. The requested subpoena was limited to obtaining the name and addresses of the individual or individuals associated with the IP address.

Legal standard

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(d) allows a court to authorize discovery before the parties’ usual initial discovery conference. Courts generally require a showing of “good cause.” For early discovery seeking the identity of an unidentified defendant, the court considered whether Strike 3: (1) identified a real person who could be sued in federal court; (2) described its efforts to identify that person; (3) showed that its complaint could withstand a motion to dismiss; and (4) showed that the requested discovery was reasonably likely to produce information allowing service of process.

Court’s analysis

The court found that Strike 3 satisfied all four requirements. The allegations that the user directed a BitTorrent client to download and distribute the movies were sufficiently specific to indicate an identifiable person. The court also noted that Strike 3 had traced the downloads to the Northern District of California and that the IP address alone was not enough to identify the person.

The court further found that Strike 3 had sufficiently alleged a basic copyright-infringement claim. That claim required allegations that Strike 3 owned the copyrighted material and that the alleged infringer violated an exclusive copyright right, such as the right to reproduce or distribute the works. Finally, the court found that AT&T U-verse was reasonably likely to identify the person associated with the IP address.

Protective order and disposition

Because the internet subscriber might not be the person who committed the alleged infringement, and because the allegations involved sensitive and personal matters, the court issued a limited protective order. Strike 3 may not publicly disclose information provided by the internet provider until the Doe defendant has had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously and the court has ruled on that request. The order also addresses sealing identifying information if the Doe defendant seeks anonymity.

The court granted Strike 3 Holdings’s ex parte motion for expedited discovery. Strike 3 may immediately serve AT&T U-verse with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45 seeking the Doe defendant’s true name and addresses. AT&T U-verse must notify the Doe defendant within 30 days after service. The Doe defendant then has 30 days after receiving notice to challenge the subpoena, including by asking to quash or modify it. If no timely challenge is filed, the provider has 10 days to produce the responsive information. Any information disclosed may be used only to protect Strike 3’s rights in the lawsuit.