`
`UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
`SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
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`- ---------------- - --------------------x
`
`MATILDE GATTONI,
`
`- against-
`
`TIBI, LLC,
`
`Plaintiff ,
`
`16 Civ. 7527
`OPINION
`
`(RWS)
`
`Defendant .
`
`--------------------------------------x
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`A P P E A R A N C E S:
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`Attorneys for Plaintiff
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`LIEBOWITZ LAW FIRM PLLC
`11 Sunrise Plaza , Suite 301
`Va ll ey Stream, NY 11580
`By : Richard Liebowitz, Esq .
`Yekaterina Tsyvkin, Esq.
`
`Attorney for Defendant
`
`LAW OFFICE OF GORDON E.R. TROY, PC
`PO Box 1180
`Shelburne , VT 05445
`By : Gordon E . R. Troy , Esq.
`
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`
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 2 of 16
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`Sweet , D.J .
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`Defendant Tibi , LLC ("Tibi " or the "Defendant") has
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`moved to dismiss the complaint of p l aintiff Matilde Gattoni
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`("Gattoni " or the "Plaintiff " ) pursuant to Rule 12(b) (6) of the
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`Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. As set forth below, the motion
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`is denied in part and granted in part.
`
`I .
`
`Prior Proceedings
`
`Gattoni filed her complaint (the " Complaint " ) against
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`Tibi on September 27 , 2016 , alleging copyright infringement
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`under Section 501 of the Copyright Act and removal and/or
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`alteration of copyright management information under Section
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`1202(b) of the Digital Mil l ennium Copyright Act . The instant
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`motion was filed on October 27, 2016 , and the motion was marked
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`fully submitted on December 15 , 2016.
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`II .
`
`The Facts
`
`The facts as set forth below are drawn from the
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`Pl aintiff's Comp l aint . They are taken as true for purposes of
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`the motion to dismiss .
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`1
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`
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 3 of 16
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`Gattoni, a professional photojournalist, is the author
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`of a photograph of a woman in a long dress walking down an empty
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`street near a building with a colorful fa9ade in Essaouira,
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`Morocco (the "Photograph") . Compl.
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`':lI':lI 5, 7, 9 & Ex. A. On or
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`about August 26, 2 016, Gattoni posted the Photograph on her
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`Instagram page, @matildegattoni. Id. ':lI 8 & Ex. B. The caption to
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`the Photograph included the phrase "(c) Matilde Gattoni
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`Photography, 2016, All rights reserved." Id. Ex. B. The
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`Photograph has a pending United States copyright registration
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`number of 1-4017865036. Id. ':lI 9 & Ex. C.
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`Tibi, a clothing corporation with a place of business
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`at 120 Wooster Street, New York, New York 10012, operates the
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`Instagram page @Tibi. Id. ':lI 6. On or about September 20 , 2016 ,
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`Tibi copied the Photograph, cropped it so that only the colorfu l
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`fa9ade of the building remained, and posted the image to Tibi's
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`Instagram page. Id. ':lI 11 & Ex. D. The post was accompanied by
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`the caption "Palette," an image of a camera, a colon , and a
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`hyperlinked reference to Gattoni's Instagram page, as shown
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`below . Id. Ex. D.
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`tlbl Palette.
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`matUdegattonl
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`2
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`
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 4 of 16
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`Tibi did not l ice n se t h e Photograph f r om Gattoni for
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`its I nstagram socia l media page , nor d i d Ti bi acqui re Gattoni ' s
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`permission or consent to publ i sh the Photograph on its Instagram
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`page pr i or to doing so . Id. ~ 1 2 .
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`III.
`
`The Applicable Standards
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`The Rule 12(b) (6) standard requires that a comp l a i nt
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`plead sufficient facts to state a c l aim u pon which relief can be
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`granted . Ashcro ft v . Iqbal , 556 U. S . 662 , 677 - 78 (2009) ; Bell
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`Atl . Corp . v. Twombly, 550 U. S. 544 , 570 (2007) . On a mo tion to
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`dismiss under Fed. R. Ci v . P 12(b) (6) , all factual a l legations
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`in th e compla i nt are accepted as true , and al l reasonable
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`inferences are drawn in the plaintiff ' s favor . Litt l ejohn v .
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`City of N . Y. , 795 F . 3d 297 , 306 (2d Cir . 2015) ; Mills v. Polar
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`Molecular Corp ., 1 2 F . 3d 1170 , 1174 (2d Ci r . 1993). However , " a
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`pla i ntiff ' s obl i gation to provi de the grounds of h i s entitlement
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`t o relief requires more than labe l s and conclusions ." Twombly,
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`550 U. S . at 555 (quotation marks omi tted) . A compla i nt must
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`contain " s u ffic i ent factua l matter , accepted as tru e ,
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`t o
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`' state
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`a c l aim to re l ief that i s plausib l e o n
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`i ts face .' " Iqbal , 556
`
`U. S . at 663 (quoting Twombly , 550 U. S . at 570) .
`
`3
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`
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 5 of 16
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`A claim is facially plausible when "the plaintiff
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`pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the
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`reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the
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`misconduct alleged." Id. (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556). In
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`other words, the factual allegations must "possess enough heft
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`to show that the pleader is entitled to relief." Twombly, 550
`
`U.S. at 557 (internal quotation marks omitted).
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`Additionally, while "a plaintiff may plead facts
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`alleged upon information and belief 'where the belief is based
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`on factual information that makes the inference of culpability
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`plausible,' such allegations must be 'accompanied by a statement
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`o f the facts upon which the belief is founded.'" Munoz-Nagel v.
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`Guess, Inc., No. 12-1312, 2013 WL 1809772, at *3 (S.D.N.Y. Apr.
`
`30, 2013)
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`(quoting Arista Records, LLC v. Doe 3, 604 F.3d 110,
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`120 (2d Cir. 2010)) and Prince v. Madison Square Garden, 427 F.
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`Supp. 2d 372, 384 (S.D.N.Y. 2006); see also Williams v.
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`Calderoni, No. 11-3020, 2012 WL 691832, *7 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 1,
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`2012) . The pleadings, h owever , "must conta in something more than
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`. a statement of facts that merely creates a suspicion [of]
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`a legally cognizable right of action." Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555
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`4
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 6 of 16
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`(quoting 5 CHARLES ALAN WRI GHT & ARTHUR R. MILLER , FEDERAL PRACTICE AND
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`PROCEDURE § 1216 (3d ed. 2004)) .
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`IV.
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`The Motion to Dismiss the Claim for Copyright Infringement
`is Granted
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`To state a claim for copyright infringement under the
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`Copyright Act , 17 U.S.C. §§ 1 01 et seq. , a plaintiff must allege
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`"(1) which original works are the subject of the copyright
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`claim;
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`(2) that the plaintiff owns the copyrights in those
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`works;
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`(3) that the copyrights have been registered in
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`accordance with the statute ; and (4) by what acts during what
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`time the defendant infringed the copyright ." Palatkevich v.
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`Choupak , Nos. 12-cv- 1681(CM) , 12-cv-1682
`
`(CM) , 2014 WL 1509 236 ,
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`at *6 (S . D. N. Y. Jan. 24, 2014) (internal quotation marks and
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`citations omitted). Gattoni has met the first two pr ongs of the
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`test : she has identified the Photograph as the original work
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`that is the subject of the instant copyright claim, and she has
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`alleged that she owns the copyright in the Photograph . She has
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`als o met the fourth prong by alleging that Tibi infringed the
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`copyright by posting a cropped version of the Photograph on its
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`Instagram page without license or consent. Gattoni has not ,
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`h owever , met the third prong of the test.
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`5
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 7 of 16
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`The third prong, demonstrating a valid copyright
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`registration, captures the statutory requirement of Section
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`411(a) of the Copyright Act, which provides in relevant part
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`that "no civil action for infringement of the copyright in any
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`United States work shall be instituted until preregistration or
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`registration of the copyright claim has been made in accordance
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`with this title." 17 U.S.C. § 411; see also 17 U.S.C. § 501. In
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`other words, "the Copyright Act [] requires copyright holders to
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`register their works before suing for copyright infringement."
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`Reed Elsevier, Inc. v. Muchnick, 559 U.S. 154, 157 (2010).
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`Prior to the Supreme Court's decision in Reed
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`Elsevier, the Second Circuit had held that failure to register a
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`work was a defect that deprived the federal courts of
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`jurisdiction over an infringement action. See, e.g., In re
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`Literary Works in Electronic Databases Copyright Litig., 509
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`F.3d 116, 121 (2d Cir. 2007), rev'd sub nom. Reed Elsevier, 559
`
`U.S. at 166. "[P]ost-Reed Elsevier, registration is an element
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`of an infringement claim, rather than a jurisdictional bar."
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`Cosmetic Ideas, Inc. v. IAC/ InteractiveCorp, 606 F.3d 612, 615
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`(9th Cir. 2010)); see also K-Beech, Inc. v. Does 1-29, No. CV
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`11-3331 JTB ETB, 2011 WL 4401933, at *1 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 19,
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`2011)
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`("While failure to register a work does not deprive a
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`6
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 8 of 16
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`federal court of jurisdiction over an action for infringement,
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`valid registration is an element of an infringement claim .")
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`The Supreme Court did not answer the question of whether
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`district courts should dismiss infringement actions when the
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`relevant work is not registered. Id. at 171 ("We
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`.
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`decline
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`to address whether§ 411(a)'s registration requirement is a
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`mandatory precondition to suit that .
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`. district courts may or
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`should enforce sua sponte by dismissing copyright infringement
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`claims involving unregistered works.").
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`Gattoni's Compla int alleges that the Photograph is the
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`subject of an application for a copyright registration and that
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`a copyright registration number is "pending." See Compl.
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`<JI 9.
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`Exhibit C to the Compla int clearly shows an "appli cation, "
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`rather than a certificate of registration, for the Photograph.
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`Courts are split over the interpretation of the pre(cid:173)
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`suit registration requirement set forth in§ 411(a) -
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`that is,
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`whether a work qualifies as registered under the statute when an
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`application for copyright is pending. See Patrick Collins, Inc.
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`v. Doe, 843 F. Supp. 2d 565, 568
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`(E .D. Pa. 2011) (discussing the
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`split among circuits and within copyright law treatises); see
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`also Cosmetic Ideas, 606 F.3d 612 at 615-16 (cata loging cases
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`7
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 9 of 16
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`and noting circuit split). Some courts have taken an
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`"'application approach,' under which a pending copyright
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`registration application is sufficient to satisfy§ 411(a) ,"
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`while others have taken a "'registration approach,' under which
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`a certificate of registration issued by the Copyright Off ice is
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`a prerequisite to suit." N. Jersey Media Grp. Inc. v. Sasson,
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`No. CIV. 2 :1 2 - 3568 WJM, 2013 WL 74237, at *3 (D.N.J. Jan. 4,
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`2013)
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`(adopting the "registration approach" and holding that
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`"until [the plaintiff] holds a certificate of copyright
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`registration .
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`[it] cannot state a prima facie claim of
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`copyright infringement for any of those works " ) ; see also
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`Patrick Collins , 843 F. Supp. 2d at 570 ("Congress chose the
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`registration approach, and we must abide by that decision.").
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`Although the Second Circuit has not addressed this
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`specific question, "[d]istrict courts in the Second Circuit
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`require that a plaintiff 'either hold a valid copyright
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`registration or have applied and been refused a registration as
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`a prerequisite to filing a civi l claim .'" Lumetrics, Inc. v .
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`Blalock, 23 F. Supp. 3d 138, 14 3
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`(W .D.N.Y. 2014) (citing Muench
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`Photography, Inc. v. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publ'g, Co ., No.
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`09 CV 2669(LAP), 2012 WL 1021535, at *2
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`(S .D.N.Y. Mar. 26 ,
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`2012)) ; see also Accurate Grading Quality Assurance, Inc. v.
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`8
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 10 of 16
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`Thorpe, No. 12 Civ . 1343(ALC), 2013 WL 1234836, at *7
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`(S .D.N. Y.
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`Mar . 2 6 , 2 013)
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`("While not a strictly jurisdictional
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`requirement, section .
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`411(a) nonetheless requires copyright
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`registration as a precondition to
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`. copyright claims ." ) ;
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`Psihoyos v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., No. 11 Civ . 1416(JSR), 2011
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`WL 4916299, at *2
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`(S .D. N.Y . Oct . 13, 2011)
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`(" The mere pendency
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`of an application is .
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`. insuffi cient to satisfy section 411 's
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`registration requirement, which the Supreme Court has determined
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`to be an absolute ' precondition '
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`to suit."); Sci. Computing
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`Assocs., Inc. v . Warnes, No. 07-CV-6351 , 2011 WL 1327398, at *l ,
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`(W.D . N. Y. Apr . 5 , 2011) (dismissing copyright infringement claim
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`where defendant conceded it did not meet the registration
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`requirement under§ 411(a)); K- Beech, Inc . v . Does 1-29, No . CV
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`11-3331(JTB) (ETB) , 2011 WL 4401933, at *1 (E.D . N.Y. Sept . 19 ,
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`2010)
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`("[ SJ ubmiss i on of an application for copyright
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`registration does not satisfy the registration precondition o f §
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`411 (a). " ) .
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`Because Gattoni has alleged on l y that the registration
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`for the allegedly infringed film is pending, and because no
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`application has been made by Gattoni to amend the Comp lai nt if
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`and when the Photograph became registered, Gattoni has not
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`properly pled the pre-requisite element of a copyright
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`9
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 11 of 16
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`infringement claim, and the Complaint 's cause of action for
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`copyright infringement necessarily fails to state a claim . The
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`Defendant's motion to dismiss the copyright infringement claim
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`is granted without prejudice. See Membler.com LLC v. Barber, No.
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`12-CV-4941 JS GR, 2013 WL 5348546, at *5
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`(E .D.N. Y. Sept. 23,
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`2013)
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`(expla ining that Pyatt v. Raymond, 462 F. App'x 22 (2d
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`Cir. 2012) now stands for the proposition that post-commencement
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`registrations will not automatically be read into the complaint
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`and the plaintiff should seek amendment); Raymond J. Dowd,
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`Copyright Litigation Handbook§ 7:1 (2d ed. 2012)
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`("[I]f a
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`plaintiff registers copyrights after the filing of a complaint
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`but does n o t supplement the compla int pursuant to Rule 15(d) of
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`the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the court may dismiss the
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`case ." ) ; Patry on Copyright§ 19:4 (2013)
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`("Where plaintiff has
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`received registrations subsequent to the filing of the
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`complaint, the complaint should be amended.").
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`Having found that this claim is dismissed because
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`Gattoni has not yet alleged a val id copyright registration, the
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`Court declines to address the parties' arguments on judi c ial
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`notice of Instagram's Terms of Service and whether Tibi
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`qualifies as a third-party beneficiary of any license conferred
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`by Instagram's Terms of Service at this time.
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`10
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 12 of 16
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`V.
`
`The Motion to Dismiss the Claim for Removal of Copyright
`Management Information is Denied
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`The Plaintiff's second claim for relief alleges that
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`the conduct of Tibi violates 17 U.S.C . § 1202(b) of the Digita l
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`Millennium Copyright Act
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`("DMCA"). Compl . ~~ 21 - 25 . Unlike for a
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`copyright infringement claim , the fact that an application for
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`copyright is pending is not a bar to a DMCA action . See Playboy
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`Enterprises Int ' l Inc . v . Mediatakeout . com LLC, No. 15 CIV . 7053
`
`(PAE) , 2016 WL 1023321 , at *5 (S.D . N. Y. Mar . 8 , 20 16) ;
`
`I . M.S.
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`Inquiry Mgmt. Sys . , Ltd. v. Berkshire Info . Sys . , Inc . , 307 F .
`
`Supp . 2d 521, 531 n.9 (S.D.N . Y. 2004)
`
`(" [ P ] laintiff's failure to
`
`register its copyrighted work is not a bar to a DMCA action. " );
`
`Med . Broadcasting Co . v . Flaiz, No . Civ . A . 02-8554 , 2003 WL
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`22838094, at * 3
`
`(E . D. Pa. Nov . 25, 2003)
`
`("While a copyright
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`registration is a prerequisite under 17 U. S.C. § 4ll(a) for an
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`action for copyright infringement , claims under the DMCA ,
`
`however , are simply not copyright infringement claims and are
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`separate and distinct from the latter " ).
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`" The DMCA prohibits , among other things ,
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`'intentionally remov[ing] or alter[ing] any copyr i ght management
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`11
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 13 of 16
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`information.'" Zalewski v. Cicero Builder Dev., Inc., 754 F.3d
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`95 , 107 (2d Cir. 2014)
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`(quoting 17 U.S.C . § 1202(b)) (alteration
`
`in the original). Copyright management information ("CMI") also
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`includes "[t]he title and other information identifying the
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`work," and "[t]he name of , and other identifying information
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`about, the author of a work." 17 U.S . C. § 1202(c); see Playboy
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`Enterprises , 2016 WL 1023321, at *5 . To establish a violation
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`under subsection 1202(b), a plaintiff must show "(1) the
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`existence of CMI on the [infringed work];
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`(2) removal and/or
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`alteration of that information; and (3) that the removal and/or
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`alteration was done intentionally." BanxCorp v. Costco Wholesale
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`Corp. , 723 F . Supp. 2d 596, 609 (S.D.N . Y. 2010) (collecting
`
`cases).
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`Gattoni alleges that Tibi, without authorization,
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`"intentionally and knowingly removed copyright management
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`information" and that Tibi "knew, or should have known, that
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`such falsification, alteration and/or removal of said copyright
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`management information would induce, enable, facilitate, or
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`conceal their infringement of Plaintiff's copyright in the
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`Photograph." Compl. ~ 22, 25. Gattoni states that the CMI that
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`existed was information "identifying Plaintiff as the owner of
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`the Photograph ." Compl. ~ 22. The Defendant contends that these
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`12
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 14 of 16
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`allegations are conclusory, and that therefore Gattoni's
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`allegations are insufficient to meet the 12(b) (6) threshold.
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`"Although Plaintiff's allegations in the Complaint are
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`relatively sparse," Gattoni has sufficiently alleged the
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`existence of CMI and its intentional removal or alteration by
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`Tibi to state a claim under subsection 1202(b) of the DMCA.
`
`Devocean Jewelry LLC v. Associated Newspapers Ltd., No. 16-CV-
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`2150
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`(KMW), 2016 WL 6135662, at *2 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 19, 2016). Her
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`Complaint is bolstered by exhibits showing that Tibi's post
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`omitted the copyright notice "(c) Matilde Gattoni Photography,
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`2016, All rights reserved" that Gattoni had included with her
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`post. Compl. Exs. B & D; see Zalewski v. Cicero Builder Dev.,
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`Inc., 754 F.3d 95, 107 (2d Cir. 2014) (highlighting "the
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`familiar (c) copyright notice" as an example of CMI); Fischer v.
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`Fo rrest, No. 14 CIV. 1304 PAE, 2015 WL 195822, at *8 (S.D.N.Y.
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`Jan. 13, 2015 (citing Ban x Corp, 723 F. Supp. 2d at 610, for the
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`proposition that "[p]roviding an actual example of the allegedly
`
`inf ringing [work] is obviously more than a conclusory
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`allegation").
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`Certainly, the presence of a credit "tag" that
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`hyperlinks to Gattoni's Instagram page in Exhibit D "undermines
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`the strength of Plaintiff's allegations regarding Defendant's
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`13
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 15 of 16
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`intent." Devocean Jewelry, 2016 WL 6135662, at *2 (noting that
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`the inclusion of copyright information by the Defendant "even
`
`[though] differ[ent] in appearance from the information
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`originally included by the Plaintiff" diminished the Plaintiff's
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`argument on the Defendant's intent). However, the Defendant
`
`cites no authorities that "tagging " the author of a Photograph
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`conclusively means the Defendant lacks the required scienter
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`under the DMCA. Further, the Court must draw all reasonable
`
`inferences in Gattoni's favor at this stage. Accordingly, the
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`motion to dismiss Gattoni's section 1202(b) claim is denied. See
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`In re DDAVP Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litig., 585 F. 3d 677 , 693
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`(2d Cir. 2009) (courts must be "lenient in allowing scienter
`
`issues .
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`. to survive motions to dismiss") .
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`VI. Conclusion
`
`Based upon the conclusions set forth above, the
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`Defendant's motion is denied in part and granted in part. The
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`Complaint 's copyright infringement cla im is dismissed without
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`prejudice. The Plaintiff is granted leave to amend the Complaint
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`within 60 days showing e ither a valid copyright registration of
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`the Photograph or rejection of her copyright registration
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`application.
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`14
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`' . . ,.
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`Case 1:16-cv-07527-RWS Document 18 Filed 05/25/17 Page 16 of 16
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`I t is so ordered .
`
`New York, NY
`May i,:;,-2017
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`15
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`