J & J Sports Productions, Inc. v. Leon

Background

J & J Sports Productions, Inc. sued Skizzy’s Sports Bar, doing business as Cantina Botanera, and its owner or principal, William Owner. The complaint alleged that the defendants broadcast a World Boxing Organization World Super Welterweight Championship Fight Program at the establishment on November 5, 2016, without paying the $2,000 fee that plaintiff would have charged for the right to broadcast it.

The plaintiff asserted claims under 47 U.S.C. § 605, which prohibits unauthorized interception, receipt, publication, and use of certain radio communications, and 47 U.S.C. § 553, which prohibits unauthorized interception and reception of programming over a cable system.

The defendants did not answer by the December 3, 2019 deadline. The Clerk entered notices of default on January 27, 2020. The court held a hearing on September 8, 2022, regarding the plaintiff’s request for default judgment, but the defendants did not appear. Because the defendants had received appropriate notice of the complaint and hearing, the court considered the request fully submitted.

Damages Request and Legal Standard

The court explained that the plaintiff could not recover under both Section 605 and Section 553 and that courts generally award damages under Section 605. Under Section 605, a plaintiff may choose actual or statutory damages. The plaintiff chose statutory damages, which may range from $1,000 to $10,000, and also sought enhanced damages for a willful violation committed for commercial advantage or private financial gain.

The plaintiff requested $6,000 in statutory damages and $18,000 in enhanced damages. The plaintiff’s memorandum used a method that would have awarded three times the statutory damages, although the plaintiff acknowledged that this method was not the one generally used by courts in the Second Circuit. The opinion also notes that the complaint and statement of damages had requested $170,000, while the later memorandum and counsel’s presentation at the hearing requested $24,000.

The court stated that statutory damages in these cases are generally based on the greater of the licensing fee the plaintiff would have charged or an estimate based on what viewers would have paid to watch the event at home. Using the latter method, the plaintiff relied on 22 allegedly present patrons and a standard amount of $54.95 per person.

Court’s Ruling

The court rejected the plaintiff’s proposed damages method because it was inconsistent with Second Circuit practice and the plaintiff had not given a compelling reason to depart from that practice. It awarded $2,000 in statutory damages, equal to the licensing fee and greater than the amount produced by the per-person calculation.

The court awarded $6,000 in enhanced damages—three times the statutory damages—because the plaintiff adequately alleged that the establishment deliberately decoded the program signal to broadcast it on the premises. The court therefore granted the plaintiff’s request for default judgment and awarded a total of $8,000 in default damages.

The court also awarded $1,213 in costs and disbursements, post-judgment interest at the federal rate, and leave to file a request for reasonable attorney’s fees under Section 605. The plaintiff was directed to serve the order on both defendants and file proof of service. The Clerk was directed to terminate the action. Judge Nelson S. Roman’s discussion states that the fee request was due by November 10, 2022, while the conclusion states November 11, 2022.