UN4 Productions Inc Sues Hawaiian Users for “Boyka” – ISP Subpoena Defense

Share

UN4 Productions Inc Sues Hawaiian Users for “Boyka” Movie Downloads

UN4 Productions Inc., the movie company behind the film Boyka: Undisputed is suing internet users in Hawaii as well as in a number of other states across the US. alleging copyright infringement by obtaining the movie for free using BitTorrent or similar software.

Hawaiian internet users of Hawaiian Telcom, Time Warner Cable, Verizon Wireless, and Sprint PCS are being sued for illegal downloads of the film “Boyka”. UN4 Productions is the movie company behind the movie and lawsuits. It is an affiliate of Millennium Funding, Inc., a production company known for aggressively filing copyright infringement complaints in court.

If you are targeted, your first notice of the copyright infringement lawsuit will be a letter from your internet company telling you it received a subpoena from UN4 Productions o reveal your name and address relating to the copyright infringement lawsuit. If you receive a letter asking you to sign a Waiver of Service of Summons form, we caution you not to sign the form until you speak with an attorney experienced with these types of copyright infringement lawsuits.


Set up a free consultation to discuss the specifics of your case, or keep reading below for more information on what you can expect from your case with UN4 Productions.


You have several options:

Contact us for a free confidential consultation with Antonelli Law (link) about each of these legal options. Call us at 312-201-8310 nationwide or use the contact link above. We have helped many Hawaiians facing federal court copyright infringement claims.

The information that follows gives a brief introduction as to the above options and we hope the information in this article is helpful to you. Note: Nothing in this article is legal advice. Consult with an experienced attorney to discuss your individual circumstances.

Settling Anonymously

Sometimes, people are most comfortable trying to settle these lawsuits soon after receiving the letter their internet company. Nationwide, this includes copyright infringement notices from AT&T, Comcast, CenturyLink, Hawaiian Telcom, Spectrum, Sprint PCS, Time Warner Cable, or Verizon Wireless. For these people they will inform an attorney at Antonelli Law that for personal or business reasons they prefer to settle the case anonymously using our legal services. This must be done before the date the internet company has to disclose their name and address to the movie company’s lawyers.

In order to settle the lawsuit anonymously, it may be unfair but the only way to do it is to hire an attorney. Antonelli Law provides this out of court service for a flat legal fee of $1,000 which includes: keeping you anonymous while negotiating a settlement price,  ensuring the terms of the settlement contains proper confidentiality and a comprehensive release of liability, and that a proper dismissal order is enter by the federal judge in your case.

Filing a Motion to Quash Subpoena in a UN4 Productions Lawsuit

Antonelli Law files motions to quash subpoenas and has been successful, although lawyers cannot guarantee a result in your case. Filing a motion to quash subpoena in a UN4 Productions lawsuit in Hawaii yourself without an attorney and without revealing your name will require an extraordinary amount of work for the reasons that follow.

For many federal judges, “the rules are the rules” and that means revealing your name for all paperwork filed in court, unless you are represented by a lawyer. Following are two recent cases where people tried to file their own motions to quash subpoena without revealing their name in a BitTorrent copyright infringement case, but their efforts were denied by the judge. You can see yourself what you may need to do to even have a chance the judge will actually look at and decide your motion to quash subpoena:

Example 1: Doe Defendant filed their own motion to quash subpoena before Colorado federal Judge Hegarty in the movie download case involving UN4 Productions and the movie “Boyka 4”.

UN4 Productions order denying John Doe MTQ 17-cv-01419

 

Example 2: Doe Defendant filed their own motion to quash subpoena before Colorado federal Judge Hegarty in the movie download case involving Venice PI LLC and the movie “Once Upon a Time in Venice”.

Venice PI, LLC Order Denying wo prejudice Doe 5 Motion to Dismiss and Quash Subpoena 17-cv-01664 CO

 

Again, it is unfair but to file a motion to quash subpoena yourself without revealing your name is extremely difficult without hiring an attorney to do it for you. Different rules apply for people who are represented by an attorney.

This is tough on Defendants wishing to remain anonymous. Defendants in BitTorrent copyright infringement lawsuits are placed into a quandary. If the Defendant follows the rule of using their name and address in filing the court papers, the movie company whether it is UN4 Productions , POW Nevada LLC, Inc., Venice PI, LLC, or any of the dozen or so other movie companies filing BitTorrent copyright infringement lawsuits would immediately know the information it sought – the Defendant’s name and address.

Avoiding this kind of morass is one reason why hiring Antonelli Law to file a motion to quash subpoena anonymously for you is a valuable service. Its simply too difficult and time consuming to try to do it yourself.

For a free confidential consultation call Antonelli Law at 312-201-8310.

WHY WOULD A DEFENDANT IN THE UN4 PRODUCTIONS CASE FILE A MOTION TO QUASH SUBPOENA?

The best reason for filing a motion to quash subpoena is if a now-anonymous defendant can manage to remain anonymous, it is possible the movie company may never be able to serve him or her with a court Summons and lawsuit Complaint. That would be a terrific win for the defense, before the case even got started and before the expensive litigation processes of discovery and motions for summary judgment are  filed.

Contact Antonelli Law For Free

If you want more information or have questions about this lawsuit, or want to file a motion to quash the Comcast subpoena or take other defensive actions, please call us at 312-201-8310 nationwide or use our confidential contact form or on the right side of this page if you are on a desktop computer.

We have helped nearly 2,000 clients across the country including in Hawaii effectively resolve copyright infringement actions made by movie companies like UN4 Productions. We will answer your questions honestly and help you decide the best course of action for you.

We Will Give You an Individualized, No Pressure, Professional Consultation – For Free.

  • Learn about what the notice means.
  • Ask every question that concerns you.
  • Learn the facts and decide if you want to settle the lawsuit anonymously, wait to see if nothing happens, or plan to fight back.
  • File a motion to quash? We’ll help you to decide.
  • Have us negotiate a settlement for you, including a proper settlement agreement that is in your interest, and a dismissal order entered by the federal court to protect you and which you keep for your records.

What Can Antonelli Law Do For Me?

Antonelli Law will help you decide what to do about the UN4 Productions letters, subpoenas, and summons. We have helped many people accused of downloading movies over the internet in these types of lawsuits.

Remember, don’t panic. Learn the facts and your legal options by speaking for free to an Antonelli Law attorney confidentially nationwide at 312-201-8310 or use the contact form here.

Our clients say Antonelli Law is very good at:

  • Reducing your anxiety about the problem
  • Giving clear information to help you decide what to do
  • Responsive and accessible via phone and email
  • Tenacious and effective lawyers in lawsuit litigation

We understand the shock you may be feeling from receiving a notice of this action, and have the experience to help you deal with this in the best way possible for you: anonymous settlement, or prepare to fight back.

But Where is the Evidence?

For the reasons that follow below, we believe filing a motion to quash subpoena to stop the Comcast Cable or CenturyLink from releasing the names and addresses of the unnamed Defendants could be justified. Stated simply, when we looked at the court filings by UN4 Productions we found what is in our opinion a complete lack of evidence of copyright infringement in the lawsuit’s complaint.

The Evidence Needed to Prove Copyright Infringement by UN4 Productions

UN4 Productions must show to the Court that:

  1. It has ownership of a valid copyright and
  2. The defendant violated the copyright owner’s exclusive rights under the Copyright Act.

We Could Not Find Sufficient Allegations of Evidence by UN4 Productions

We examined the court filings of UN4 Productions in case number 17-cv-00480 UN4 Productions v. Does 1-24 filed in the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii. From this review, we did not see that movie company alleged sufficient evidence to show that its copyright was violated by the defendants it accuses.

You can read these filings for yourself by viewing the embedded Complaint below:

UN4 Productions Complaint 17-cv-00480 Hawaii

In our review of these court filings, in our opinion UN4 Productions has simply failed to allege sufficient evidence to show that its copyright was violated by the defendants it accuses.

In other words:

From what we saw, nothing was said about the size or contents of the portions of the work actually downloaded from the defendants’ IP addresses

All the Complaint says (in Paragraph 46)) is “Each Defendant had copied a piece of the Plaintiff’s Work identified by the Unique Hash Number” (bold added). So what’s in a “piece”? Is it enough data to even display one image frame of the movie? Or is it even less than that?

 

Defendants May File Motions to Quash Subpoena & Dismiss Complaint

Because of what we see as the lack of allegations as to the size or contents of the portions of the work actually downloaded from the defendants’ IP addresses, we feel it would be justified to:

  1. File a motion to quash the subpoena
  2. File a motion to dismiss the complaint via Federal Rule 12(b)(6)

It may cost more to take these actions than it would be for a defendant hire us to help them settle anonymously, but this could be the right strategy for some who are targeted in UN4 Productions lawsuits. If the judge agrees when looking to the motion to quash subpoena that the Complaint is not sufficient, the judge could kill the case of permanently. It is also possible the judge could allow the movie company another chance to make a better Complaint with better evidence allegations.  Whether the “amended complaint” would be good enough for the case to proceed further or not simply cannot be predicted. You won’t know until you try.

Did You Receive a Letter from your ISP Notifying You of a Subpoena From UN4 Productions?

If you are reading this article, you were probably searching the internet for information because you received a letter from your ISP notifying you that a subpoena was received from UN4 Productions. We can help. The subpoena demands that the ISP reveal the internet account holder’s name and address to UN4 productions for purposes of the copyright infringement lawsuit.

The ISP notice will inform you that you have the legal right to file a motion to quash or vacate the subpoena to prevent your name and address from being revealed to movie company. Click here for information on filing a motion to quash the subpoena.

Want to Talk to Antonelli Law About These Questions Right Away? Start Here

If you want to talk for free with a defense lawyer right away about a UN4 Productions lawsuit, use our contact form above or call us at 312-201-8310 nationwide. We’re the nation’s most experienced BT copyright defense firm. Or scroll down to continue learning more about these lawsuits.

[lexicata-contact-form]

Looking for UN4 Productions Lawsuit Information In Another State?

Click on the state you are interested in:

Are Movie Download Lawsuits like the UN4 Productions Lawsuit Wrong?

It is undisputed that internet piracy is a large problem for copyright holders. However, innocent people are being targeted in free movie download lawsuits because the data can be wrong, and paying the internet bill does not mean you illegally downloaded the movie for free.

Does UN4 Productions Inc. Have Enough Data to Prove Its Claims?

In many free movie lawsuits, the movie company alleges that its agents obtained data from the alleged IP address of the defendant in what is called a BitTorrent “swarm” – which is one way people download large files.

How much data is enough for a legally sufficient lawsuit complaint?

In some cases, these lawsuits can be challenged because the Plaintiff must show:

  1. It has ownership of a valid copyright and
  2. The defendant violated the copyright owner’s exclusive rights under the Copyright Act.

In one case Antonelli Law defended (a different movie than the one here), on behalf of our client we contended that Plaintiff did not allege sufficient evidence to show that any of its copyrighted materials were violated. The movie company submitted a declaration of its agent (not the same as the company in this article) stating that “multiple bits were conveyed over [the] connection.” However, we argued, multiple “bits” of data do not translate to a viewable image close enough to approximate being substantially similar to the movie company’s copyrighted work.

As Law Professor Matthew Sag states in his recent article “Defense Against the Dark Arts of Copyright Trolling”:

“the isolated “bits” of the movie that [Plaintiff] supposedly received from the defendant’s IP address do not meet the standard for copyright infringement. In the cases that we have studied, the plaintiffs have offered declarations that defendant’s IP address was observed transmitting data with a certain hash value. That hash value, it is alleged, is the same as the hash value of a piece that the witness combined with other pieces to create a file identical to the copyright owner’s work… note that these declarations say nothing about the size or contents of the portions of the work actually downloaded from the defendant’s IP address. In essence, the plaintiff can only state truthfully that its software observed the defendant’s IP address transmitting a fraction of the work….”There is nothing in either declaration that would allow the court to conclude that the “bits” and “pieces” captured by [plaintiff’s experts’] technology as allegedly distributed from Doe’s IP address meet the standard of originality justifying a finding that they are protectable elements of the works.

***

So How Much Data Did UN4 Productions Allegedly Observe From Defendants?

In at least one UN4 Productions lawsuit, the movie company’s lawsuit Complaint states that “Each Defendant had copied a piece of the Plaintiff’s Work identified by the Unique Hash Number”.

Is this all the evidence that they have?

If so, are these allegations in the UN4 Productions lawsuit enough to withstand a motion to dismiss the Complaint under federal rule 12(b)(6)? A defendant will need to ask the judge to make that determination. It may cost more to do this than to settle, but this could be the right strategy for some who are targeted in UN4 Productions lawsuits.

Have You Received a Letter or Summons?

Have you received a letter, summons, or subpoena about the UN4 Productions, Inc. lawsuit? If so, you may have questions regarding your legal options about defending yourself.

After being targeted in a copyright infringement lawsuit by UN4 Productions, Inc, it usually starts with a letter from your internet company and may be followed by another letter from the movie company’s lawyer. You could also receive something called a Waiver of Service of Summons.

What Are These Lawsuits About?

  • Critics of these lawsuits say its about the movie company generating more revenue.
  • The movie company says it is filing these lawsuits to stop piracy of its intellectual property.

What Are Movie Downloading Cases in General About? What Are “Copyright Troll” Lawsuits?

If you want to read more, consider reading the article I wrote about “copyright troll” litigation which was published by the Illinois State Bar Association’s Intellectual Property Section:

Torrent Wars

Copyright Trolls, Legitimate IP rights, and the Need for New Rules Vetting Evidence and to Amend the Copyright Act

by Jeffrey J. Antonelli

Can Antonelli Law Help Me?

Copyright infringement lawsuits are based in federal law, so we provide affordable, experienced legal help anywhere in the United States. We’re the nation’s most experienced BT copyright defense firm, helping nearly 2,000 people across the country accused of downloading movies over the internet in these type of lawsuits.  Antonelli Law will help you decide what to do about UN4 Productions letters, subpoenas, and summons.

We will give you an Individualized, No Pressure, Professional Consultation – For Free.

  • Learn about what the notice means.
  • Ask every question that concerns you.
  • Learn the facts and decide if you want to settle the lawsuit anonymously, wait to see if nothing happens, or plan to fight back.
  • File a motion to quash? We’ll help you to decide.
  • Have us negotiate a settlement for you, including a proper settlement agreement that is in your interest, and a dismissal order entered by the federal court to protect you and which you keep for your records.

Remember, don’t panic. Learn the facts and your legal options by speaking for free to an Antonelli Law attorney confidentially at 312-201-8310 or use the contact form below.

Our clients say Antonelli Law is very good at:

  • Reducing your anxiety about the problem
  • Giving clear information to help you decide what to do
  • Responsive and accessible via phone and email
  • Tenacious and effective lawyers in lawsuit litigation

We understand the shock you may be feeling from receiving a notice of this action, and have the experience to help you deal with this in the best way possible for you: anonymous settlement, or prepare to fight back.

The lawsuits are premised on the US Copyright Act alleging copyright infringement through peer-to-peer file sharing.

The Lawsuits in Hawaii Are:

  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-24  17-cv-00480
  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-16  17-cv-00448
  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-20  17-cv-00331
  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-20 1:17-cv-00282

UN4 Productions Inc is represented in the Hawaii lawsuit by attorney Kerry Culpepper of Culpepper IP

The Lawsuits in Ohio Are:

  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-11  5:17-cv-01185
  • UN4 Productions v Does 1-10 3:17-cv-01190

UN4 Productions Inc. is represented in the Ohio lawsuits by attorney Timothy A. Shimko.

The Lawsuits in Colorado Are:

UN4 Productions Inc. v. Does

  • (1 et al) 1:17-cv-01973
  • Does 1-23 1:17-cv-01419
  • Does 1-22 1:17-cv-01299
  • (1-19) 1:17-cv-01253
  • 1:17-cv-01689
  • 1:17-cv-01577
  • 1:17-cv-01477

UN4 Productions Inc is represented in Colorado by attorney David John Stephenson, Jr.

The Lawsuits in Illinois Are: 

UN4 Productions, Inc. v. Does

  • 1:17-cv-05569
  • 1:17-cv-05567
  • 1:17-cv-05565
  • 1:17-cv-05563
  • 1:17-cv-05561
  • 1:17-cv-04868
  • 1:17-cv-04866
  • 1:17-cv-04865
  • 1:17-cv-04863
  • 1:17-cv-04861
  • 1:17-cv-01477

UN4 Productions Inc is represented in Illinois by attorney Michael A. Hierl

The Lawsuits in Indiana Are:

UN4 Productions Inc. v. Does

  • (1-11) 1:17-cv-02037
  • (1-10) 1:17-cv-00228
  • (1-11) 1:17-cv-01710
  • 1:17-cv-02070
  • 3:17-cv-00473
  • 1:17-cv-00257
UN4 Productions Inc is represented in Indiana by attorney R Matthew Van Sickle

The Lawsuits in New York Are:

  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-17 1:17-cv-03699-LTS
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-14 1:17-cv-03278
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-9 2:17-cv-02481

UN4 Productions Inc is represented in New York by attorney Bryan Neil DeMatteo of DeMatteo Law, PLLC

 The Lawsuits in North Carolina Are:

  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-15 3:2017-cv-00295
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-12 3:2017-cv-00297
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-17 7:2017-cv-00109
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-10 3:2017-cv-00282
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-11 3:2017-cv-00284
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-9  5:2017-cv-00238
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-15   5:2017-cv-00232
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-10 1:2017-cv-00453
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-14  1:2017-cv-00455
  • UN4 Productions, Inc. v Does 1-12  1:2017-cv-00444

UN4 Productions Inc is represented in North Carolina by attorney R. Matthew Van Sickle

If your internet address (“IP address”) is involved, your first notice of the lawsuit will probably be a letter from Comcast Cable internet and a copy of a subpoena from UN4 Productions Inc. Scroll down for additional information about these lawsuits or click here for our FAQ on movie download lawsuits.

Received a Subpoena from Comcast? The best thing to do is to talk with an experienced lawyer. 

 Call us at 312-201-8310 for a free lawyer consultation or to obtain our help.

Antonelli Law’s Nationwide Local Counsel

Byron L Ames Nevada & Utah local counsel

Byron L Ames Nevada & Utah local counsel BitTorrent Copyright Defense for Antonelli Law

Jeffrey Antonelli

Jeffrey-Antonelli

Melissa Brabender

Attorney Melissa Brabender

Mark Del Bianco  Jurisdictions: Maryland, Washington DC

Attorney Mark Del Bianco is Antonelli Law’s Maryland local counsel for Maryland and Washington DC

Leslie Farber  Jurisdictions: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania

Leslie Farber – New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania

Peter Glazer  Jurisdiction: Virginia

Virginia copyright defense attorney Peter Glazer

Tristan C. Robinson Jurisdiction: Texas

Southern District of Texas

Call us and let our deep experience help you make the right legal decision for your circumstances at 312-201-8310 for a free lawyer consultation. We will help you decide what to do about the UN4 Productions Inc. subpoenas or summons.

We have helped many internet users across the country (and their parents and/or landlords) who have been sued or targeted in these type of lawsuits. We can also defend you and help protect your anonymity in a lawsuit if circumstances allow.

We understand the shock you may be feeling from receiving a notice of this action, and have the experience to help you deal with this in the best way possible for you: anonymous settlement, or prepare to fight back.

Attorneys: Don’t risk malpractice in a copyright lawsuit if you don’t do this type of work regularly – the  loser pays statutory and attorneys fees. We accept attorney referrals and are very experienced in this specialized litigation.

Recent Press on Antonelli Law

Click here for an NPR/WBEZ interview with attorney Jeffrey Antonelli.

“Often times people tell us, look, I can’t deal with this. This will put my job at risk. Or my reputation in the community–to have me named in a copyright lawsuit involving pornography could be devastating. So, I want to settle.”

Remember, don’t panic. Learn the facts and your legal options by speaking for free to an Antonelli Law attorney confidentially at 312-201-8310 or use the contact form above.

What Steps Are in a  UN4 Productions Inc. Lawsuit?

Each lawsuit is filed in federal court and requests permission to find out the real names of internet users associated with IP addresses suspected of being part of the movie downloading. This is done by sending a subpoena to the internet company (ISP). Most people find out they are involved in the lawsuit when they receive a letter from their internet company (ISP) such as Comcast, COX, Comcast, or Verizon informing them of the copyright infringement allegations. A copy of a UN4 Productions Inc. subpoena will probably be enclosed.

If you are the account holder for an internet service provider (ISP), your name is linked to an IP address. If you receive a Comcast Cable or other ISP letter informing you a subpoena was received to reveal your identity for a copyright infringement lawsuit, call Antonelli Law nationwide about your options including a motion to quash the subpoena at 312-201-8310.

UN4 Productions Inc. lawsuit subpoenas and summons can be scary or inconvenient, but we can help you manage the risk and the hassle.

Please tell your friends NOT to download this movie or they may be sued. Their first notice will be receiving one of the several UN4 Productions Inc. subpoenas.

UN4 Productions Inc. is represented in the Illinois lawsuit by attorney Michael Hierl and the law firm Hughes Socol Piers Resnick Dym, Ltd.

More Information About Antonelli Law’s Nationwide Defense Practice

Antonelli Law defense attorneys and local counsel are admitted to the district courts wherever UN4 Productions Inc. lawsuits are filed from coast to coast. We are able to represent you in your federal case without being more expensive or more difficult to hire than hiring a local law firm in part because federal courts require attorneys to file their papers electronically, and often conduct hearings by telephone. This makes frequent trips to the courthouse unnecessary.

We can also defend you and help protect your anonymity in a UN4 Productions Inc. lawsuit if circumstances allow.

Call us for a free consultation nationwide at 312-201-8310

Some of our attorneys are listed below. We represent clients nationwide including in Hawaii, California, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Texas, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington DC.

 

See Also:

ISP Copyright Infringement Letters – What to Do – Antonelli Law Defense

What’s In a Settlement Agreement? Confidentiality Clauses & No Admission of Guilt – Antonelli Law

Colorado Defendant Fights UN4 Productions Movie Lawsuit On His Own – Court Again Keeps Rules in Play; Says Try Again – Antonelli Law Defense

UN4 Productions Cases Cut Short by Chicago Federal Judge – Antonelli Law Defense

Share

Add a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Website Apps