Playboy v. Netscape

Citation: Playboy Enterprises, Inc. v. Netscape Communications Corp., 354 F.3d 1020, 69 U.S.P.Q.2d (BNA) 1417 (9th Cir. 2004).

Factual Background
Netscape and Excite are Internet search engines. They earned Playboy’s ire by including banner ads for other, adult-oriented companies on the results pages that list website]s in response to searches for the words “playboy” and “playmate,” both of which (when spelled with capital P’s) are Playboy’s [[registered trademarks.

Trial Court Proceedings
Early in the case, federal District Judge Alicemarie Stotler disappointed Playboy by denying its motion for a preliminary injunction &mdash; a ruling that was affirmed the Court of Appeals (in an opinion it did not publish). Then, Judge Stotler granted Netscape and Excite’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing the case entirely (in an unpublished opinion). Playboy appealed again, this time with success.

Appellate Court Decision
In an opinion by Judge T.G. Nelson, the appellate court held that fact issues exist on two key issues in the case: whether Netscape and Excite created a likelihood of “initial interest confusion” or diluted Playboy’s trademarks by listing other companies ads on “playboy” and “playmate” search result pages. As a result, the appellate court has reversed the dismissal of the case and remanded it to Judge Stotler for a trial.