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Internet Brands Inc. v. Jape

The Communications Decency Act barred the plaintiff's defamation claim against the defendant website owner and operator, as the objectionable content at issue was not created, developed or transformed by the defendant.

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In these cases consolidated for purposes of appeal, we consider whether the Communications Decency Act of 1996 “CDA”, 47 USCS § 230, bars Dan Jape’s defamation action against Internet Brands, Inc. We conclude that the CDA does apply to bar Jape’s claim, and therefore hold in Case No. A14A0219 that the trial court erred in denying Internet Brands’ motion for summary judgment. In Case No. A14A0220, we affirm the trial court’s denial of Jape’s motion for sanctions “for abuse of mediation.”

The relevant facts here are undisputed. Internet Brands owns and operates a website for boating enthusiasts, proving a forum for individuals to “chat” and share information related to boating. Registered users, or members, engage in discussion on the website by posting comments under user names they create. According to Patrick Stack, an Internet Brands manager, the website has no moderators, but does have a single administrator. Some members of the website have the ability to delete “spam” posts “e. g., posts that offer items for sale”. Stack averred that these “spam deleters” are not employees of Internet Brands and are not paid any cash compensation. Spam deleters are not authorized to ban users, remove posts or delete discussion threads, or perform the functions of a moderator or administrator. Members generally have, however, the ability to block another member’s posts from his or her own view.

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