Stross v. Trend Hunter Inc., 2020 FC 201
Justice Furlanetto - 2020-02-06
Read full decision. Automatically generated summary:
This action, brought under the Federal Court’s simplified procedure, is a copyright infringement action relating to the alleged unauthorized use of six photographs. ... In and around 2011, Mr. Stross was engaged by an architect, Matthew Garcia, to photograph a housing project consisting of tiny houses located in a compound adjacent to the Llano River in Texas, USA. ... Trend Hunter operates trendhunter.com, a database that generates research data for Trend Hunter by crowdsourcing content and measuring users’ interaction with that content. Trend Hunter uses both artificial intelligence as well as personnel to process data generated by trendhunter.com, which is then used to prepare consumer trend reports for clients. ... The Defendants assert that their use of the photographs is covered by the fair dealing exceptions to infringement under sections 29 and 29.2 of the Copyright Act. The Defendants also assert that any alleged damages arising from purported infringement have not be proven and that there is no evidence to establish any personal liability of Mr. Gutsche. ... On a balance of the factors set out above, it is my opinion that the use of the Llano River Photographs by Trend Hunter does not constitute fair dealing and that Trend Hunter is liable for copyright infringement.
Decision relates to:
- T-130-18 - Alexander Stross v. Trend Hunter Inc., Jeremy Gutsche