Perfect 10, Inc. v. Google, Inc.
653 F.3d 976
| 9th Cir. | 2011Background
- Perfect 10 seeks a preliminary injunction against Google in a copyright dispute arising from Google’s search, image caches, Blogger, and takedown-notice forwarding to chillingeffects.org.
- District court denied preliminary relief after finding no likelihood of irreparable harm and resolving related DMCA safe-harbor issues in Google’s favor.
- Perfect 10 contends Google’s services infringe copyrights or violate publicity rights assigned by some models; it seeks to halt access to infringing material.
- Google operates search, image caching, and Blogger services; it forwards takedown notices to chillingeffects.org, which preserves URLs to allegedly infringing material.
- The Ninth Circuit abates a presumption of irreparable harm under eBay analysis and applies a case-by-case four-factor test for injunctions in copyright cases.
- The court ultimately affirms the district court’s denial of the preliminary injunction.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether four-factor test supports injunctive relief | Perfect 10 relies on likelihood of success and presumes irreparable harm | Google argues no irreparable harm and case-by-case inquiry required | Four-factor test governs; no irreparable harm shown |
| Effect of eBay on irreparable-harm presumption in copyright | eBay-based presumption should apply to copyright claims | eBay abrogates automatic presumption; requires case-specific review | eBay-based presumption rejected; proceed with traditional four-factor inquiry |
| Causation between Google’s services and Perfect 10’s irreparable harm | Access to free images via Google destroys subscription model | No causal link proven; Perfect 10 never shown ongoing harm from Google alone | No sufficient causal link; irreparable-harm standard not satisfied |
Key Cases Cited
- Apple Computer, Inc. v. Formula International, Inc., 725 F.2d 521 (9th Cir. 1984) (presumption of irreparable harm for copyright merits not post-eBay)
- eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C., 547 U.S. 388 (Sup. Ct. 2006) (rejects automatic injunction presumption; four-factor framework applies)
- Amoco Prod. Co. v. Vill. of Gambell, 480 U.S. 531 (Sup. Ct. 1987) (preliminary injunction standard similar to permanent)
- Salinger v. Colting, 607 F.3d 68 (2d Cir. 2010) (rejection of presumption under eBay in copyright)
- Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms, 130 S. Ct. 2743 (Sup. Ct. 2010) (extends eBay reasoning to NEPA context; no thumb on the scale)
- Winter v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7 (Sup. Ct. 2008) (four-factor test; public-interest factor remains)