Baltimore Nightclub Owner Pirated 4 PPV Broadcasts in June 2021, Alleges Complaint

A Baltimore nightclub and its owner “willfully engaged” in wrongful acts when they intercepted four pay-per-view boxing and Ultimate Fighting Championship broadcasts in June 2021 for free, alleged Joe Hand Promotions’ Communications Act complaint Thursday (docket 1:24-cv-01633) in U.S. District Court for Maryland. Tisha Powell, owner of the Oasis Night Club, knew or should have known that the interception and exhibition of the broadcasts wasn’t “properly authorized,” said the complaint. The broadcasts weren’t for private viewing, nor were they for residential, noncommercial purposes, it said. The nightclub sold food and drinks during the broadcasts, and the public display of the programs was to entice patrons to the establishment to spend money while viewing it, it said. Powell intentionally pirated the program for her own economic gain, while other establishments paid substantial sums for the proper commercial sublicense to show the broadcasts legitimately to their patrons, it said. The complaint seeks maximum damages of $110,000 for each willful violation of Section 605 of the Communications Act, or alternatively, the maximum of $60,000 for each willful violation of Section 553.