Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 67.180.146.203
- Laurel Beeler
- 3:22-cv-03332
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 8
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Beeler authorized early discovery from Comcast to identify the subscriber while protecting the information’s confidentiality.
Strike 3 Holdings, the unidentified Doe defendant associated with IP address 67.180.146.203, Comcast Cable, and any person whose identifying information Comcast may disclose.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued John Doe, identified by an internet address, claiming that the person used BitTorrent to download and distribute 32 of Strike 3’s copyrighted adult movies. Strike 3 said it could not identify the person and asked to subpoena Comcast, the internet provider, for the subscriber’s name and addresses.
The court found good cause for early discovery. It concluded that Strike 3 had identified a real person who could be sued, described its efforts to identify that person, adequately alleged copyright infringement for purposes of the request, and showed that Comcast was likely to have information identifying the person. The court also ordered limited confidentiality protections because the allegations involved sensitive personal matters and the subscriber might not be the alleged infringer.
The court granted Strike 3’s motion for expedited discovery. Strike 3 could immediately serve Comcast with a subpoena, but the subscriber would receive notice and have 30 days to challenge it. Judge Beeler also limited how Strike 3 could use the information and barred public disclosure until the subscriber had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 67.180.146.203 · No. 3:22-cv-03332
- Laurel Beeler
- July 6, 2022
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC alleged that the Doe defendant, associated with Comcast Cable internet address 67.180.146.203, used BitTorrent to download and distribute 32 copyrighted adult motion pictures. Strike 3 said it owned the copyrights, had detected downloads from that internet address through its VXN Scan system, and had traced the activity to a physical address in the Northern District of California. It filed one copyright-infringement claim but had not been able to identify the individual using the address.
Strike 3 asked for permission to serve Comcast, a non-party internet-service provider, with an early subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45. The requested information was limited to the name and addresses of the individual or individuals associated with the internet address.
Legal standard and analysis
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(d) allows a court to authorize discovery before the parties’ required discovery conference when appropriate. Courts generally require a showing of “good cause,” meaning that the need for expedited discovery outweighs possible prejudice to the responding party.
The court applied four factors for identifying an unknown defendant: whether the Doe defendant was described specifically enough to be a real person who could be sued in federal court; whether Strike 3 explained its efforts to identify the person; whether the copyright claim could withstand a motion to dismiss; and whether the requested discovery was reasonably likely to produce information permitting service of process.
The court found that Strike 3 satisfied all four factors. It determined that the allegations described an identifiable adult who was likely the primary subscriber or someone living with or known to the subscriber. It also found that Strike 3 had adequately alleged ownership of the copyrights and unauthorized copying and distribution, which was enough to show a prima facie copyright claim at this stage. The court did not decide whether the Doe defendant was ultimately liable for infringement.
Protective order
The court issued a limited protective order because the subscriber might not be the person who infringed the copyrights and because the case involved sensitive allegations. Information Comcast disclosed to Strike 3 could not be made public until the Doe defendant had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously and the court ruled on that request. If the Doe defendant included identifying information in that request, the papers could be filed under seal. The protection would expire if the Doe defendant did not request permission to proceed anonymously within 30 days after the information was disclosed to Strike 3’s counsel.
Disposition
The court granted Strike 3’s ex parte motion for expedited discovery. Strike 3 could immediately serve Comcast with a subpoena for the Doe defendant’s true name and addresses, attaching the order. Comcast had 30 days after service to notify the Doe defendant. The Doe defendant then had 30 days after receiving notice to challenge the subpoena, including by asking the court to cancel or modify it. If no timely challenge was filed, Comcast would have 10 days to produce the responsive information. Any information obtained could be used only to protect Strike 3’s rights described in the complaint. Judge Laurel Beeler signed the order as a United States Magistrate Judge.
Read the full 8-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.