Eclipse Sportswire v. Sports Moments Plus, LLC

Background

Eclipse Sportswire, an editorial photography entity specializing in horse-sports photography, registered two photographs of a thoroughbred horse race with the Register of Copyrights. Eclipse alleged that Sports Moments Plus, LLC (SMP) and SMP’s owner, John Binetti, listed the photographs for sale on SMP’s website without a license or permission. Eclipse notified the defendants of the alleged unauthorized use, but they did not cure it or defend the lawsuit.

Eclipse asserted three claims: copyright infringement, vicarious copyright infringement by SMP, and common-law unfair competition. Eclipse served both defendants, and the clerk entered default after they failed to answer or otherwise respond. A default judgment is a judgment entered when a defendant does not defend, but the court must still determine whether the alleged facts establish a valid claim and must determine damages.

Claims and Liability

The court held that the allegations, taken as true because of the defendants’ default, established valid copyright-infringement claims against both SMP and Binetti. The court also accepted Eclipse’s allegation that the infringement was willful, meaning intentional or knowing for purposes of the damages analysis.

The court denied default judgment on Eclipse’s unfair-competition claim. Under Minnesota law, unfair competition is a general category of commercial torts and must be based on an underlying tort. Because Eclipse’s unfair-competition claim duplicated its copyright-infringement claim, it could not stand separately.

Damages, Fees, and Interest

Eclipse requested either the maximum statutory damages of $150,000 per photograph or $50,000 total based on a multiple of the photographs’ licensing value. The court found that the alleged conduct did not warrant the statutory maximum. It instead awarded $25,000 in statutory damages—five times the estimated $2,500 license fee for each photograph—to compensate Eclipse and deter future infringement.

Eclipse requested $11,426.50 in attorneys’ fees and $787 in costs. The court found the claimed hourly rates reasonable. It rejected $2,167.50 in fees for inadequately described or insufficiently supported time entries and, in the analysis, stated that it would award $8,994 in attorneys’ fees. The court awarded the requested $787 in costs.

The court granted post-judgment interest at the rate specified by federal law, calculated under 28 U.S.C. § 1961, and denied pre-judgment interest because Eclipse had not identified binding authority allowing that award in this case.

Disposition

The order states that Eclipse’s motion for default judgment was GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. It awarded $25,000 in statutory damages, $9,259 in attorneys’ fees, $787 in costs, and post-judgment interest on a total judgment of $35,046 against SMP and Binetti. The order’s fee and total-judgment figures differ from the amounts stated in the court’s preceding fee analysis: $9,259 and $35,046 appear in the operative order, while $8,994 appears in the analysis. The clerk was directed to enter judgment for Eclipse.