Castle Rock Entertainment, Inc. v. Carol Publishing Group, Inc.

150 F.3d 132 (2nd Cir. 1998)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P is the producer and copyright owner of each episode of the Seinfeld television series. Ds are the author, and the publisher, of The SAT, a 132-page book containing 643 trivia questions and answers about the events and characters depicted in Seinfeld. The book includes 211 multiple choice questions, in which only one out of three to five answers is correct; 93 matching questions; and a number of short-answer questions. The questions are divided into five levels of difficulty: 'Wuss Questions,' 'This, That, and the Other Questions,' 'Tough Monkey Questions,' 'Atomic Wedgie Questions,' and 'Master of Your Domain Questions.' D created the incorrect answers to the multiple choice questions. Every question and the correct answer has as its source a moment in a Seinfeld episode. Forty-one questions and/or answers contain dialogue from the show. 'The Cigar Store Indian' episode is the source of 20 questions that directly quote between 3.6% and 5.6% of that episode. The name 'Seinfeld' appears prominently on the front and back covers. Pictures of the principal actors appear on the cover and several pages of the book. A disclaimer states that 'This book has not been approved or licensed by any entity involved in creating or producing Seinfeld.' The front cover bears the title 'The Seinfeld Aptitude Test' and describes the book as containing 'hundreds of spectacular questions of minute details from TV's greatest show about absolutely nothing.' D has described The SAT as a 'natural outgrowth' of Seinfeld which, 'like the Seinfeld show, is devoted to the trifling, picayune and petty annoyances encountered by the show's characters on a daily basis.' D created The SAT by taking notes from Seinfeld programs at the time they were aired on television and subsequently reviewing videotapes of several of the episodes, as recorded by her or various friends. NBC which broadcasted Seinfeld requested free copies of The SAT from Ds and distributed them together with promotions for the program. Seinfeld's executive producer characterized The SAT as 'a fun little book.' There is no evidence that The SAT's publication diminished Seinfeld's profitability, and in fact, Seinfeld's audience grew after The SAT was first published. P notified Ds of its copyright and trademark infringement claims. P filed this action alleging federal copyright and trademark infringement and state law unfair competition. The court held that Ds had violated P's copyrights in Seinfeld and that such copying did not constitute fair use. The district court entered judgment on the copyright infringement claim, awarded Castle Rock $403,000 with interest, permanently enjoined Ds from publishing or distributing The SAT, and ordered Ds to destroy all copies of The SAT in their custody or control. Ds appealed.