Ellis v. Cartoon Network, Inc.

Cartoon Network, Inc. (defendant) had a free mobile application, called the CN app, which users could download to their smartphones. Users could watch various video clips of Cartoon Network shows for free without creating or logging into an account. Mark Ellis (plaintiff) downloaded the CN app to his Android smartphone and used it to watch free video clips. As was standard with the CN app, each time Ellis closed the app, Cartoon Network sent Ellis’s Android ID and a list of his viewing activity to Bango. Bango was a third party that specialized in tracking a person’s activities across the internet and various mobile applications to reveal consumer behavior. Because Bango collected vast quantities of data, it was able to link an Android ID with a particular person. When Ellis learned that information was being shared with Bango, he sued Cartoon Network, alleging that Cartoon Network violated the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA). Ellis claimed that he qualified as a subscriber under the VPPA and was therefore a consumer entitled to the act’s protections. Further, he claimed that his Android ID and viewing history constituted personally identifiable information and that Cartoon Network therefore violated the VPPA by sending that information to Bango. The district court granted Cartoon Network’s motion to dismiss Ellis’s claim. The court concluded that although Ellis qualified as a subscriber, his Android ID and viewing history did not constitute personally identifiable information, and Cartoon Network therefore did not violate the VPPA by sharing that information with Bango. Ellis appealed.