Mist-On Systems, Inc. v. Gilley's European Tan Spa

303 F. Supp. 2d 974
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Wisconsin
DecidedMay 2, 2002
Docket02-C4038-C
StatusPublished

This text of 303 F. Supp. 2d 974 (Mist-On Systems, Inc. v. Gilley's European Tan Spa) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mist-On Systems, Inc. v. Gilley's European Tan Spa, 303 F. Supp. 2d 974 (W.D. Wis. 2002).

Opinion

303 F.Supp.2d 974 (2002)

MIST-ON SYSTEMS, INC., Plaintiff,
v.
GILLEY'S EUROPEAN TAN SPA and Dan Gilley, Defendants.

No. 02-C4038-C.

United States District Court, W.D. Wisconsin.

May 2, 2002.

*975 Mary Beth Peranteau, Milwaukee, WI, for plaintiff.

John Skilton, Heller, Ehrman, White & McAuliffe, Madison, WI, for defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER

CRABB, District Judge.

Plaintiff Mist-On Systems, Inc. brings this action against defendants Gilley's European Tan Spa and Dan Gilley for copyright infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 501, contributory copyright infringement and vicarious liability, unfair competition under *976 Wisconsin common law and false designation of origin and false representations under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a). Plaintiff contends that defendants infringed plaintiffs exclusive rights under the Copyright Act by preparing and displaying on their web page an unauthorized Frequently Asked Questions page that mirrors the Frequently Asked Questions page found on plaintiffs web page. Plaintiff alleges that it suffered irreparable damage and sustained lost profits as a result of the infringement. Plaintiff seeks monetary relief and a permanent injunction restraining defendants from engaging in further acts in violation of the copyright laws.

This court has subject matter jurisdiction over the federal claims pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1338. Because the state claims appear to be "so related to claims in the action ... that they form part of the same case or controversy," supplemental jurisdiction attaches under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(a). The case is before the court on defendants' motion for summary judgment.

Because I find that no reasonable person could conclude that the two Frequently Asked Questions pages are similar enough to support a conclusion that defendants copied plaintiff's original expression, defendants' motion for summary judgment on plaintiffs copyright claims will be granted. In addition, because I find that plaintiff has failed to adduce facts beyond those underlying its copyright infringement claim that would support either the state law unfair competition claims or the false designation of origin and unfair competition claims under the Lanham Act, defendants' motion for summary judgment on these claims will be granted.

From the parties' proposed findings of fact and from the record, I find that the following material facts are not in dispute.

UNDISPUTED FACTS

This case presents few facts for the court to consider. The web page material for which the plaintiff claims a copyright is attached to the complaint as Exhibits A and B. The defendants' web page material that the plaintiff claims infringes its copyright is attached to the complaint as Exhibit C. Copies of the web pages have been attached to this opinion, and I incorporate them as undisputed facts.

OPINION

I. SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARDS

To prevail on a motion for summary judgment, the moving party must show that even when all inferences are drawn in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. 56(c); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). When the moving party succeeds in showing the absence of a genuine issue as to any material fact, the opposing party cannot rest on the pleadings but must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Matsushita Electric Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). Summary judgment may be awarded against the non-moving party only if the court concludes that a reasonable jury could not find for that party on the basis of the facts before it. Hayden v. La-Z-Boy Chair Co., 9 F.3d 617, 618 (7th Cir.1993).

II. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

To succeed on its copyright infringement claim, plaintiff must show: 1) ownership of a valid copyright and 2) copying *977 of constituent elements of the work that are original. Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural Telephone Service Co., Inc., 499 U.S. 340, 361, 111 S.Ct. 1282, 113 L.Ed.2d 358 (1991); Wildlife Express Corp. v. Carol Wright Sales, Inc., 18 F.3d 502, 507 (7th Cir.1994). Plaintiff submitted copies of its application for registration from the United States Register of Copyrights. Submission of an application for registration fulfills the first requirement of an infringement action. See 2 Melville B. Nimmer & David Nimmer, Nimmer on Copyright § 7.16[B][1][a], n. 39. Defendants do not dispute that plaintiff's web page is protected by a valid copyright for purposes of this motion.

Unauthorized copying can be established when the plaintiff can show both that "`defendant had access to the copyrighted work" and, that "`the accused work is substantially similar to the copyrighted work.'" Wildlife Express, 18 F.3d at 508 (citing Atari, Inc. v. North American Philips Consumer Electronics Corp., 672 F.2d 607, 614 (7th Cir.1982)). Defendants have not disputed that they had access to the web page. See, e.g., Robert R. Jones Associates v. Nino Homes, 858 F.2d 274, 277 (6th Cir.1988) (finding access when defendant had opportunity to view protected item). In this case, the issue concerns the second part of the test, whether defendants copied anything in plaintiffs web page that is protected as an original work. Feist, 499 U.S. at 361, 111 S.Ct. 1282. "Originality remains the sine qua non of copyright; accordingly, copyright protection may extend only to those components of a work that are original to the author." Id. at 348, 111 S.Ct. 1282. Generally, ideas themselves are not protected, only the expression of those ideas. Harper & Row Publishers Inc. v. Nation Enterprises., 471 U.S. 539, 556, 105 S.Ct. 2218, 85 L.Ed.2d 588 (1985). The question is whether defendants' web page copied protected expression from plaintiffs web-site or "merely used the same underlying ideas." Francorp. Inc., v. Siebert, 210 F.Supp.2d 961, 964-65 (N.D.Ill.2001).

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