From our private database of 46,500+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd.

United States District Court for the Central District of California
243 F. Supp. 2d 1073 (2003)

Written by Eric Miller, JD

Facts

Niklas Zennström (defendant) and Janus Friis (defendant) developed FastTrack networking technology, which was used to power three file-sharing networks: Grokster, Ltd. (defendant), Streamcast Networks, Inc. (defendant), and Kazaa BV (defendant). The FastTrack technology was owned by Zennström’s company, Joltid, Ltd. Kazaa BV, which was launched by Friis, transferred ownership of key assets, including the Kazaa.com domain and Kazaa desktop software, to a newly formed company, Sharman Networks, Ltd. (Sharman) (defendant). Joltid then granted Sharman a license to use and sublicense FastTrack. Zennström, Friis, and their business enterprises were all based outside the United States, though large numbers of Americans downloaded the Kazaa application. Files shared on the system included copyrighted content. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. (MGM) (plaintiff) brought a copyright-infringement suit in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. In attempting to establish that Sharman engaged in contacts with California, MGM asserted that approximately two million Californians had downloaded Kazaa. Sharman moved to dismiss, arguing that the court lacked personal jurisdiction.

Rule of Law

The rule of law is the black letter law upon which the court rested its decision. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Issue

The issue section includes the dispositive legal issue in the case phrased as a question. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Holding and Reasoning (Wilson, J.)

The holding and reasoning section includes:

A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

What to do next…

Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.
You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.
Unlock this case brief Read our student testimonials
Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.
Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.
Learn about our approach Read more about Quimbee

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
46,500 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
Uniform format for every case brief
Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
Top-notch customer support