PHILADELPHIA – A Philadelphia company alleges that its content was posted more than 50 times without credit on social media websites.
Media Coop LLC, doing business as Hangtime Media, filed a complaint on July 31 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Barcelo Maya Beach Resort and Barcelo Group alleging copyright infringement and breach of contract.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff creates photography and video content used in the hospitality and tourism industries that it licenses for use for clients' advertising and marketing purposes. The suit states the plaintiff and defendants entered into a services agreement in May 2016.
The plaintiff holds Barcelo Maya Beach Resort and Barcelo Group responsible because the defendants allegedly breached their contractual agreement with the plaintiff by posting plaintiff's work on social media without plaintiff's consent or credit.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment against the defendant, order the defendant to take down any and all postings of plaintiff's work on their website and social media account, statutory damages, profits, compensatory damages of more than $75,000, punitive damages in excess of $1 million, interest, court costs and any further relief the court grants. It is represented by William Farran of Nicoll Davis & Spinella LLP in Philadelphia.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:17-cv-03403-RBS