Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 1 of 25 Page ID #:1
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`KARIN G. PAGNANELLI (SBN 174763)
`kgp@msk.com
`MARC E. MAYER (SBN 190969)
`mem@msk.com
`JAMES D. BERKLEY (SBN 347919)
`jdb@msk.com
`MITCHELL SILBERBERG & KNUPP LLP
`2049 Century Park East, 18th Floor
`Los Angeles, CA 90067-3120
`Telephone: (310) 312-2000
`Facsimile: (310) 312-3100
`Attorneys for Plaintiff Take-Two
`Interactive Software, Inc.
`
`UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
`CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
`
`TAKE-TWO INTERACTIVE
`SOFTWARE, INC.,
`Plaintiff,
`
`v.
`PLAYERAUCTIONS, INC., a
`company organized under the laws of
`Delaware; IMI EXCHANGE LLC, a
`company organized under the laws of
`Delaware; PAIAO NETWORK
`TECHNOLOGY (SHANGHAI) CO.,
`LTD. (拍奥网络科技（上海）有限公
`司), a/k/a PLAYERAUCTIONS (SH)
`CO. LTD., a company organized under
`the laws of China; and DOES 1 through
`10, inclusive,
`Defendants.
`
`CASE NO. __________
`2:25-cv-01880
`COMPLAINT FOR:
`(1) COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
`(2) CONTRIBUTORY
`COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
`(3) VICARIOUS COPYRIGHT
`INFRINGEMENT
`(4) INDUCEMENT OF
`COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
`(5) TRADEMARK
`INFRINGEMENT
`(6) FALSE DESIGNATION OF
`ORIGIN, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)
`(7) INTENTIONAL
`INTERFERENCE WITH
`CONTRACTUAL RELATIONS
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`DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL
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`COMPLAINT
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`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 2 of 25 Page ID #:2
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`Plaintiff Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (“Take-Two” or “Plaintiff”),
`for its Complaint against Defendants PlayerAuctions, Inc.; IMI Exchange LLC;
`Paiao Network Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. (拍奥网络科技（上海）有限
`公司), a/k/a PlayerAuctions (SH) Co. Ltd.; and Does 1 through 10 (collectively,
`“PlayerAuctions” or “Defendants”), alleges as follows:
`Preliminary Statement
`Take-Two is the publisher and copyright owner of the iconic Grand
`1.
`Theft Auto (“GTA”) video game series. Developed by Take-Two’s subsidiary
`Rockstar Games (“Rockstar”), GTA is one of the most critically acclaimed and
`commercially successful entertainment franchises in the world. The latest release
`in the series, Grand Theft Auto V (“GTA V”), puts players in an immersive action-
`adventure game world filled with fast cars, thrilling heists, and ruthless criminals.
`Since its launch in 2013, GTA V has sold more than 205 million copies, and its
`multiplayer online mode, Grand Theft Auto Online, is played daily by tens of
`thousands of fans worldwide.
`2. While GTA lets players experience a fictional underworld of lawless
`enterprise, the entities behind PlayerAuctions own and operate a real one: the
`website PlayerAuctions.com offers a vast online marketplace1 containing
`thousands of listings for unauthorized, infringing GTA V content – including
`heavily modified player accounts, in-game assets, and virtual currency – all gained
`by using hacking software, cheats, and technical exploits. Although
`PlayerAuctions is desperate to portray itself as a legitimate business, the truth is
`that PlayerAuctions operates, supervises, and profits from commercialized
`infringement of Take-Two’s copyrights and trademarks on an industrial scale.
`PlayerAuctions’ Website is not a regular online marketplace where
`3.
`third parties sell legitimate items on their own initiative. Instead, PlayerAuctions
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`1 Available at https://www.playerauctions.com/gta-marketplace/ (“Website”).
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`Mitchell
`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 3 of 25 Page ID #:3
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`runs a sophisticated sales platform and actively recruits “sellers” skilled at using
`hacking software and other exploits to create infringing digital goods and to
`provide illegal “services” to players of GTA V.
`PlayerAuctions operates the Website with full knowledge that its
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`sellers are engaged in rampant infringement and other unauthorized conduct.
`Nonetheless, PlayerAuctions reaps millions in revenue by taking a cut of every
`transaction on its marketplace. PlayerAuctions goes to great lengths to lull its
`users into buying illegitimate GTA V content from its sellers, including by offering
`“after-sale protection” – i.e. refunds – if the hacked accounts they purchase are
`detected and banned by Take-Two’s anti-cheat systems. PlayerAuctions offers this
`“protection” because it knows the hacked player account listings on its marketplace
`are infringing and unauthorized under Take-Two’s terms of service.
`PlayerAuctions’ willful infringement not only damages Take-Two but
`5.
`also harms innocent GTA V players. At the scale of its Website, PlayerAuctions
`risks upending the GTA V player experience and interferes with the balance and
`fairness of the game. PlayerAuctions’ business also actively promotes behavior
`that risks creating a “race for the bottom” where innocent GTA V players feel
`pressured to buy unauthorized digital goods and service, or else resort to using
`hacks or cheating themselves, to “keep up” with PlayerAuctions’ customers.
`Take-Two has repeatedly confronted PlayerAuctions with evidence of
`6.
`infringement and other tortious conduct, and has demanded that it cease and deist
`its unlawful activities. PlayerAuctions refuses to stop because it continues to rake
`in illicit profits through the wholesale, willful infringement of Take-Two’s
`copyrights and trademarks, and the intentional interference with Take-Two’s
`relationships with its customers. Accordingly, Take-Two brings this lawsuit to
`shut down PlayerAuctions’ rampant infringing online marketplace, end its corrupt
`business model, and protect the integrity of GTA V for its players.
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`Mitchell
`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`

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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 4 of 25 Page ID #:4
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`The Parties
`Take-Two is a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws
`7.
`of the State of Delaware, with its principal place of business in New York, New
`York.
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`PlayerAuctions, Inc. (“PlayerAuctions USA”) is a corporation
`8.
`formed under the laws of Delaware and registered to conduct business in the State
`of California. On information and belief, PlayerAuctions, Inc. is headquartered in
`Los Angeles, California.
`IMI Exchange, LLC (“IMI Exchange”) is a company formed under
`9.
`the laws of Delaware. On information and belief, IMI Exchange’s principal place
`of business is in Ridgefield, New Jersey, and the company has been registered to
`conduct business in the State of California. On information and belief, IMI
`Exchange is a wholly owned direct subsidiary of the South Korea-based entity
`Nexture Co., Ltd. (“Nexture”) and is the direct parent of PlayerAuctions USA.
`10. Paiao Network Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. (拍奥网络科技（
`上海）有限公司) (“PlayerAuctions Shanghai”) is a corporation formed under the
`laws of China. On information and belief, PlayerAuctions Shanghai was formerly
`was known as Itemmania Network Technology (Shanghai) Ltd., and is known as
`PlayerAuctions (SH) Co. Ltd. On information and belief, PlayerAuctions
`Shanghai is a wholly owned direct subsidiary of PlayerAuctions USA.
`11. The true names and capacities, whether individual, corporate,
`associate, or otherwise, of the defendants sued herein as Does 1-10, inclusive, are
`unknown to Take-Two, which has therefore sued said defendants by such fictitious
`names. Take-Two will seek leave to amend this complaint to state the true names
`and capacities of all Doe defendants once said defendants’ full identities and
`capacities are ascertained. On information and belief, all defendants sued herein,
`including the Doe defendants, directly participated in all or some of the acts set
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 5 of 25 Page ID #:5
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`forth in this complaint, and therefore are liable to Take-Two. (The defendants
`collectively are referred to as “Defendants” or “PlayerAuctions.”).
`12. On information and belief, there exists a unity of interest and
`ownership between and among each of the Defendants such that no separateness
`between these entities exists. Additionally, adherence to the fiction of the separate
`existence of the Defendants would sanction a fraud or promote injustice, including
`by enabling certain of Defendants to hide behind corporate shell companies, divert
`assets from such companies, or raise jurisdictional defenses based on the existence
`of such companies. As a result, the Court should pierce the corporate veil and find
`all of the Defendants jointly and severally liable.
`Jurisdiction and Venue
`13. This is a civil action seeking damages, injunctive relief, and other
`equitable relief under the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 501; the Lanham Act, 15
`U.S.C. §§ 114, 1116-17 and § 1125(a); and the laws of the State of California.
`14. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over Take-Two’s Copyright
`Act claims under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1338(a), and over Take-Two’s Lanham
`Act claims under 15 U.S.C. §§ 1116, 1121, and 1125. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §
`1367, this Court has supplemental jurisdiction over Take-Two’s state law claims
`because the claims are so related to Take-Two’s federal claims as to be part of the
`same case or controversy.
`15. This Court has personal jurisdiction over the Defendants, including
`because the Defendants have engaged in, knowingly contributed to, supervised,
`and induced the infringing and otherwise tortious conduct alleged herein within the
`State of California, and have purposefully directed their activities at the State of
`California. Further, the Defendants know that the damages and other harmful
`effects of the Defendants’ infringing activities occur in the United States, where
`Take-Two has its principal place of business and where it has a substantial number
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 6 of 25 Page ID #:6
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`of customers, including many players of GTA V within the State of California who
`are adversely affected by the Defendants’ unauthorized and infringing activities.
`16. Venue is proper in this District pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)
`because this is a judicial district in which a substantial part of the events giving rise
`to the claims occurred, and/or in which Take-Two’s injury was suffered.
`FACTS APPLICABLE TO ALL CAUSES OF ACTION
`Take-Two and GTA V
`17. Since the release of the original Grand Theft Auto in 1997, Take-Two
`has sold more than 430 million copies of games in the GTA series, and several
`GTA installments have won numerous awards for their game design and storylines.
`Take-Two, with Rockstar and its partners and affiliates, develops, produces,
`markets, advertises, distributes, and otherwise exploits the GTA series in numerous
`countries throughout the world.
`18. First released in 2013, GTA V, including its multiplayer online
`component Grand Theft Auto Online (“GTA Online”), is one of most successful,
`influential, and critically acclaimed games of all time. GTA V immerses players in
`a fictional yet highly realistic world of San Andreas, in the fictional city of Los
`Santos, inspired by Los Angeles and surrounding areas in Southern California.
`Within this immersive virtual world, players of GTA V progress through a mixture
`of cinematic, plot-driven missions and exploring the open-ended environment to
`discover new challenges and opportunities.
`19.
`In Grand Theft Auto Online, users create their own characters and
`interact in real time with other players. Players start at level zero, but as they gain
`experience in GTA Online, they advance to higher levels, accumulating virtual
`money and assets, such as cars and other vehicles, new weapons, and unlock
`ownership of lucrative new “criminal enterprises.” Players also progress by
`earning “reputation points,” which offer access to higher levels, new and better in-
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`game equipment and assets, and new game content such as higher-stakes missions.
`Enabling players to realize a steady progression from lower to higher levels is a
`core gameplay feature of GTA Online.
`20. Rockstar releases new content for GTA Online through regular game
`updates, which generally feature new storylines and missions, as well as new or
`upgraded vehicles, weapons, and clothing. Players gain new equipment and
`vehicles by buying them with in-game currency, which they can earn through
`gameplay. Additionally, Take-Two sells virtual currency packs, which players can
`purchase for real-world money and then redeem in-game.
`21. Take-Two employs a variety of measures to prevent bad actors from
`damaging the integrity of the game by engaging in cheating or hacking to obtain
`in-game currency, assets (vehicles, weapons, clothing), and reputation points not
`acquired through valid means. Among measures to maintain a fair and balanced
`game environment for its players, Take-Two prohibits players or third-parties from
`selling or creating secondary markets for player accounts, in-game assets, or virtual
`currency. These restrictions are set out in the Rockstar Terms of Service available
`at http://www.rockstargames.com/legal (the “Rockstar TOS”). A copy of the
`Rockstar TOS is attached to this Complaint as Exhibit A.
`The Rockstar TOS
`22. GTA V is available to play on personal computer (“PC”), and the
`Microsoft Xbox and Sony PlayStation game consoles. Regardless of which
`platform a user plays on, all users must agree to the Rockstar TOS before
`accessing or playing GTA V. On PC, users are presented with and accept the
`Rockstar TOS (1) when purchasing directly from Rockstar’s website or via a third-
`party distributor during check-out; (2) when downloading Rockstar’s proprietary
`game launching software, the Rockstar Game Launcher; and (3) during the GTA V
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 8 of 25 Page ID #:8
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`installation process. On console, players are presented with the Rockstar TOS and
`must agree to it before logging into GTA Online.
`23. By agreeing to the Rockstar TOS, players of all versions are granted a
`limited, non-exclusive, and non-transferable license to access and use GTA V,
`virtual in-game items, and related products and services, strictly for their own
`personal and non-commercial use.
`24. The Rockstar TOS expressly prohibits any sale or transfer of player
`accounts, in-game virtual goods, or in-game virtual currency. For example, users
`agree that the license granted “is personal to [them] only and does not give … any
`ownership rights in any of the Services, Virtual Items, or [the user’s] Account….”;
`“agree not to sell, transfer, or share [their] Account, or [their] Account’s user name
`or password”; consent that “[v]irtual Items … may not be sold, transferred, or
`redeemed for real money or items of value outside of the Services”; and agree that
`they “will not commercially exploit the Services . . . include[ing] participating in,
`enabling, or encouraging the collection, sale, or exchange of anything from the
`services….”
`25. The Rockstar TOS also conditions its limited license on users
`agreeing to not undertake any unauthorized modification or “hacking” of GTA V’s
`software, or assist others in doing so, including in ways that would alter the GTA
`V gameplay experience or adversely affect other players.
`26. The Rockstar TOS provides that Take-Two owns all rights to its
`intellectual property relating to GTA V. This includes (1) all game accounts and
`all “virtual goods and in-game currency”; (2) all “graphics, artworks, illustrations
`… interactive features [and] gameplay,” as well as “all other copyrightable
`material”; (3) all “trademarks, logos, trade names, trade dress, service marks, and
`trade identities of various parties,” including Take-Two’s own; and (4) all “other
`forms of intellectual property.”
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`27. Take-Two is the owner of valid and subsisting registered copyrights in
`GTA V, including for versions of playable on different devices. A list of such
`registrations including their copyright registration numbers is attached hereto as
`Exhibit B.
`28. Take-Two also is the owner of valid and subsisting U.S. and
`international trademarks, including registered trademarks, pertaining to GTA V,
`including without limitation the word marks “GTA”, “GTa”, and “Grand Theft
`Auto Online” (collectively, the “GTA Trademarks”). A list of such U.S. trademark
`registrations is attached hereto as Exhibit C.
`Operation of the PlayerAuctions Website
`29. The PlayerAuctions Website features thousands of illicit listings
`where “sellers” offer “Modded Accounts,” “Money Drop Services,” and “Account
`Boosting Services.” These schemes are marketed to buyers so that PlayerAuctions
`can illegally profit off GTA V.
`30. Modded Accounts are specific player accounts that have been
`manipulated using software that hacks Take-Two’s copyrighted source code
`without authorization, often to give exorbitantly high game level ranking and in-
`game currency amounts, and to unlock in-game content that users must normally
`obtain through gameplay or purchase with virtual currency. PlayerAuctions
`advertises that “Modded GTA 5 accounts contain anything and everything buyers
`want . . . . When they want to live the life in Los Santos with everything they could
`think of right at their fingertips, gamers buy GTA 5 modded accounts PC.”
`31. Money Drop Services provide the opportunity for users to enter an in-
`game lobby where a seller will generate vast amounts of in-game virtual currency
`for the purchasing player, which is accomplished using hacking software to modify
`Take-Two’s copyrighted source code without authorization.
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`20545902.1
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`32. Account “Boosting” Services allow users to share their GTA V
`account while a seller, in exchange for payment, uses hacking software, glitches, or
`exploits to achieve a higher in-game level ranking, obtain exorbitantly high in-
`game currency balances, and/or unlock in-game content that users must normally
`obtain either through persistent gameplay or by purchases with virtual currency.
`33. Through these offerings, PlayerAuctions markets to Take-Two’s
`customers an otherwise impossible experience: new players can begin GTA V with
`billions in VC and with a massive arsenal of in-game content—such as vehicles,
`clothing, and weapons—configurations only possible by hacking and modifying
`the GTA V game in breach of the Rockstar TOS. In some cases, these listings
`advertise “unlock all” accounts preloaded with maxed-out character levels and
`virtually all in-game assets available to acquire in GTA Online. Moreover, users
`buying Account Boosting Services give control of their GTA V account
`temporarily to an unknown third party – in violation of the Rockstar TOS – and
`disclose their GTA V account information, including passwords.
`34. PlayerAuctions reap fantastic financial benefits from the infringement
`and other unauthorized conduct they supervise, induce, and control.
`PlayerAuctions retains as “transaction fees” a percentage of all payments on its
`Website, including fees of 12.99% on financial transactions for “modded” accounts
`and for “power-levelling.” Indeed, a recent corporate statement identifies
`PlayerAuctions as realizing revenues of millions of dollars per year, reflecting
`transactions that, on information and belief, total in the many tens of millions or
`even upwards of 100 million dollars.
`35. To increase its base of users – and its profits – PlayerAuctions
`actively markets and encourages participation in its illicit schemes as either buyers
`or sellers, or both. PlayerAuctions provides a seamless infrastructure and detailed
`instructions for buying and selling Modded Accounts, Money Drops, and Account
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`20545902.1
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`Boosting Services for GTA V by suppling its users with video tutorials, online help
`functions, and its own private messaging system. To sellers, PlayerAuctions
`promise powerful “tools and services” that make it easy for them to “manage,
`promote, and grow [their] business,” while to buyers, PlayerAuctions make
`promises of “unparalleled protection” and hold out that PlayerAuctions will allow
`them to “dominate [their] game.”
`36. PlayerAuctions also brands and promotes its most successful sellers –
`those who sell thousands of orders per year – as “Power Sellers.” Power Sellers
`receive special perks such as “[d]irect access to our Power Seller management
`team” and a special “bulk offer upload tool for items and accounts.” Upon
`information and belief, several “Power Sellers” are active in the United States and
`offer services, including Modded Accounts.
`37. PlayerAuctions incentivizes sellers to create and sell Modded
`Accounts by offering a tool called an “Account Calculator,” which allows users to
`“Check how much your Grand Theft Auto V Account is worth!” The calculator
`clearly demonstrates that GTA V accounts are more valuable the more the assets
`and content the account has, encouraging sellers to boost the GTA V accounts to
`have more and more content. Upon information and belief, PlayerAuctions is
`aware that the overwhelming number, if not all, of the GTA V accounts being
`improperly offered for sale on the Website are generated not by legitimately
`playing GTA V, but by deliberate efforts to modify the game and game software in
`violation of the Rockstar TOS.
`PlayerAuctions’ Control Over Its Users And Its Website
`38. PlayerAuctions exercises strict control and supervision over its
`Website. In its own words, “we are the mediators, keeping an eye out on all
`transactions and protecting our members from scamming.” PlayerAuctions
`requires all buyers and sellers to register, verifies the identity of sellers, serves as
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`intermediary for all payments, arranges to hold exchanged materials in escrow, and
`claims to employ “several state of the art technologies” to prevent fraud between
`buyers and sellers. The Website even purports to subject all GTA V accounts
`being transferred to an “inspection process.”
`39. PlayerAuctions also imposes strict control over its sellers. For
`example, in a “Secure Seller Agreement,” PlayerAuctions dictates that it
`“reserve[s] the right to determine what content is appropriate for our site and to
`remove any content that we find to be inappropriate” and that “[o]ffers in violation
`of our Policies may be removed from our site without warning,” resulting
`potentially in “suspension or permanent closure of your account.” And to all users,
`it warns that “PlayerAuctions may deny access to its Services or terminate or
`suspend your account … and your access to the Services should we have reason to
`believe that you, your content, or your use of the Services violate our Terms.”
`Upon information and belief, PlayerAuctions actively supervise, monitor, and
`control the content of all “listings” appearing on the Website. And ironically,
`while PlayerAuctions promotes the unauthorized transfer of GTA V accounts, it
`strictly prohibits the transfer of users’ accounts through its own Terms of Service.
`PlayerAuctions’ Willful Infringement
`40. PlayerAuctions knowingly and willfully commits, contributes to,
`induces, and profits from copyright infringement. For example, by soliciting the
`buying and selling of “modded” or “hacked” GTA accounts, and of related
`products and services feasible only through unauthorized modification and
`adaptation of GTA V and its component software, PlayerAuctions knowingly and
`actively supports and encourages infringing use of the GTA V software, and offers
`a platform to disseminate the fruits of that infringement.
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`COMPLAINT
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`Mitchell
`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 13 of 25 Page ID #:13
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`41. Additionally, PlayerAuctions knowingly markets its illicit services by
`optimizing the website to create demand for infringement of Take-Two’s
`copyrights in GTA V through search engine results:
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`Finally, to support of its own business, the PlayerAuctions Website
`42.
`hosts infringing images of gameplay generated from “modded” versions of GTA
`V. On information and belief, PlayerAuctions knows and intends that sellers will
`upload such materials to promote its “listings” on the Website, and PlayerAuctions
`actively monitors, controls, and supervises the content of these listings, including
`the infringing images, which serve to advertise the listed offering and create profit
`for Defendants.
`43. On multiple occasions Take-Two has sent notices to PlayerAuctions
`USA setting forth the nature and location of the extensive copyright infringement
`and other violations of Take Two’s rights committed on and through the Website.
`These notices have effectively been ignored, with no actions taken by
`PlayerAuctions to eliminate or reduce the scope of their infringement.
`PlayerAuctions’ extensive copyright infringement is done under the
`44.
`banner of Take-Two’s own trademarks, which PlayerAuctions willfully
`misappropriate and infringe. For example, PlayerAuctions infringes the GTA
`Trademarks by promoting a “PlayerAuctions GTA Marketplace” and “GTA store,”
`and by purporting to offer for sale what it advertises as “Legit GTA Accounts.”
`The Website juxtaposes these uses of the GTA Trademarks with PlayerAuctions’
`own name and logo, trading off consumer recognition of the GTA Trademarks and
`falsely connoting PlayerAuctions’ association with or endorsement by Take-Two:
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`20545902.1
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 14 of 25 Page ID #:14
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`45. All of the foregoing is causing significant, ongoing, and irreparable
`harm to Take-Two, and causing significant harm to consumers and to the
`community of legitimate players of GTA V. Despite multiple warnings,
`PlayerAuctions’ conduct continues unabated.
`FIRST CLAIM FOR RELIEF
`Direct Copyright Infringement - (Against All Defendants)
`Take-Two re-alleges and incorporates by reference the allegations in
`46.
`paragraphs 1 through 45, as if set forth fully herein.
`Take-Two is the owner of valid and registered copyrights in GTA V,
`47.
`including as individually registered for multiple gaming platforms.
`48. Defendants have infringed, and are continuing to infringe, Take-
`Two’s copyrights in GTA V by reproducing, distributing, and publicly displaying,
`and by knowingly authorizing others to reproduce, distribute, publicly display,
`copyrighted elements of GTA V, and/or copyrighted elements of unauthorized
`derivative versions thereof, without authorization, in violation of the Copyright
`Act, 17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq.
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`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`49. Take-Two has never authorized or given consent to Defendants to use
`its copyrighted works in the manner complained of herein.
`50. Defendants’ acts of infringement are willful, in disregard of, and with
`indifference to Take-Two’s rights.
`51. As a direct and proximate result of the infringements alleged herein,
`Take-Two’s is entitled to damages and to Defendants’ profits in amounts to be
`proven at trial, which are not currently ascertainable. Alternatively, Take-Two is
`entitled to maximum statutory damages of $150,000 for each copyright infringed,
`or in such other amount as may be proper under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c). Take-Two
`further is entitled to its attorneys’ fees and full costs pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 505.
`52. As a result of Defendants’ conduct, Take-Two has sustained and will
`continue to sustain irreparable injury for which there is no adequate remedy at law.
`On information and belief, unless enjoined and restrained by this Court,
`Defendants will continue to infringe Plaintiff’s rights in GTA V. Take-Two is
`entitled to temporary, preliminary, and permanent injunctive relief to restrain and
`enjoin Defendants’ continuing infringing conduct.
`SECOND CLAIM FOR RELIEF
`Contributory Copyright Infringement - (Against All Defendants)
`53. Take-Two re-alleges and incorporates by reference the allegations in
`paragraphs 1 through 52, as if set forth fully herein.
`54. Take-Two is the owner of valid and registered copyrights in GTA V,
`including as individually registered for multiple gaming platforms.
`55. By operating the PlayerAuctions Website and committing the acts
`described above, one or more of Defendants engaged in acts of direct copyright
`infringement, including unauthorized reproduction, distribution, and display of
`elements of GTA V and/or of unauthorized derivative versions thereof. In
`addition, users of the of PlayerAuctions Website engaged in unauthorized
`
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`COMPLAINT
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`Mitchell
`Silberberg &
`Knupp LLP
`20545902.1
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`Case 2:25-cv-01880-AJR Document 1 Filed 03/04/25 Page 16 of 25 Page ID #:16
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`reproduction, distribution, adaptation, and/or display of GTA V, or of copyrighted
`elements thereof, when they created, used, disseminated, and promoted versions of
`GTA V that modified creative and gameplay elements of GTA V and exceeded the
`scope and conditions of the Rockstar TOS. Take-Two has never authorized or
`given consent to the use of GTA V in this manner.
`56. Each such underlying infringement by Defendants' users, and/or by
`Defendants themselves, constitutes a separate and distinct act of infringement.
`57. Defendants materially contributed to one or more of the foregoing acts
`of infringement, with knowledge that they were facilitating, encouraging, or
`enabling copyright infringement.
`58. Defendants’ acts of infringement were willful, in disregard of and
`with indifference to Take-Two’s rights.
`59. As a direct and proximate result of the infringements alleged herein,
`Take-Two’s is entitled to damages and to Defendants’ profits in amounts to be
`proven at trial, which are not currently ascertainable. Alternatively, Take-Two is
`entitled to maximum statutory damages of $150,000 for each copyright infringed,
`or in such other amount as may be proper under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c). Take-Two
`further is entitled to its attorneys’ fees and full costs pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 505.
`60. Take-Two has sustained and will continue to sustain irreparable injury
`for which there is no adequate remedy at law. On information and belief, unless
`enjoined and restrained by this Court, Defendants will continue to infringe
`Plaintiff’s rights in GTA V