Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Intern. Corp.
| Citation | 210 F.Supp.2d 147 |
| Decision Date | 26 June 2002 |
| Docket Number | No. 98 CV 7964.,98 CV 7964. |
| Parties | WELL-MADE TOY MFG. CORP., Plaintiff, v. GOFFA INTERNATIONAL CORP., Defendant. Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp., Plaintiff, v. King Kullen Grocery Co., Inc., Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York |
Gerard F. Dunne, Law Offices of Gerard F. Dunne, New York, NY, for Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp.
Martin Pavane, Cohen, Pontani, Lieberman & Pavane, New York, NY, Edward S. Hochman, New York, NY, for Goffa Intern. Corp.
MEMORANDUM, ORDER AND JUDGEMENT
I. Introduction
Based on its copyright and registration of its 20 inch ragdoll, plaintiff sues for copying of its 48 inch rag doll, designed by it as a grown-up version of the smaller toy. Judgement for defendant is required because small dolls, like humans, grow up with substantially changed proportions.
II. Procedural History
In 1999, plaintiff, Well-Made Toy Manufacturing Corporation ("Well-Made"), filed separate actions against Goffa International Corporation ("Goffa"), the manufacturer of the allegedly infringing doll, and King Kullen Grocery Company ("King Kullen"), a chain of supermarkets that sold it at retail. Since Well-Made has indemnified King Kullen, the singular word "defendant" is used throughout this memorandum.
The cases were consolidated for all purposes. They were tried without a jury.
III. Facts
Rag dolls are soft, stuffed fabric playthings which were traditionally made at home from scrap pieces of fabric. Currently, most rag dolls are manufactured by toy companies. The doll designer in this country creates annotated paper patterns. Mass cutting of individual fabric pieces and sewing together of the parts to create an empty shell, or "skin," are typically accomplished in China. The shapes of the constituent fabric pieces and the way in which the pieces are assembled and stuffed determines the three-dimensional form of the doll. The skins are stuffed in this country to give the toy volume.
Designing rag dolls is not a field in which experimentation or deviation from the norm is highly valued. The standard elements are well-known. As plaintiff's designer testified, "it is putting things together to make one new creation that makes it individual." Rag dolls typically have in one skin a head, a torso, limbs, hands, and feet; a dress and bonnet can either be attached or separate. They commonly incorporate quaint outfits, including dresses of traditional style, print fabric with matching bonnets, hair consisting of yarn which is often braided, faces which often have embroidered features, limbs that are sometimes more floppy than the torso, and shoes which are built in and stuffed with the same material as the rest of the doll. Ruffles, cuffs, and bows are common features. Density of the stuffing determines rigidity.
The plaintiff, Well-Made, produces a ragdoll named "Sweetie Mine". It was designed for plaintiff in 1995 by Marla Speer. Ms. Speer began by drawing a two-dimensional illustration. She then created fabric patterns for the pieces that would make up the three-dimensional doll. She also laid out embroidery for the face and painted a pattern for the doll's dress. To give a more defined form to the doll's face, the designer incorporated a polyester backing, or "face pocket." She testified that she borrowed the idea for a "face pocket" from generally available designs of teddy bears and other stuffed animals. Her doll was 20 inches tall.
Well-Made received a copyright registration for the Sweetie Mine doll in 1996. Copyright Registration No. VA 770-506 (dated April 26, 1996). The deposit pictures accompanying the copyright application were photographs of the 20 inch doll. Copyrightable features of the work were identified as the "facial artwork and body sculpture."
In early 1998, Well-Made developed a 48 inch version of the Sweetie Mine. This 140 percent increase in scale was accomplished by using a photocopy machine to enlarge the paper drawings of the 20 inch fabric patterns. Enlarged patterns were then adjusted so that the larger doll's proportions would remain pleasing. For example, the head was reduced in size and the legs lengthened. Ms. Speer testified that these adjustments were intended to preserve the "same aesthetic appeal as the original design." Krista Kosmas, who also participated in the creation of the 48 inch doll for Well-Made, testified that enlarging the doll without altering the proportions would result in a "fat, very klutzy looking doll."
Both admitted that these adjustments were not mathematically governed by any strict rules of proportionality; artistic discretion was required. Ms. Speer's testimony was as follows:
Aside from these proportional considerations, three substantive changes were made that seem unrelated to proportion. First, the shape of the faces is different. That of the 20 inch doll has five distinct angles: two just below the cheeks, two at the temples, and one at the peak of the forehead. This gives the face a soft pentagonal look, like an inverted strawberry that comes to a peak at the forehead. The 48 inch doll has a wider, more elliptical face; the distinct angles are absent; and the head juts forward from the body further as a result of larger darts in the fabric. Second, the features of the 20 inch doll are set lower in the face, so that it has a high forehead; the facial features of the 48 inch doll are more centered, so that the forehead is lower. These changes give the 48 inch doll an "older" look than the 20 inch doll. Finally, the bow, or sash, which was included on the back of the waistband of the 20 inch doll was omitted from the 48 inch product.
All in all, the Well-Made 48 inch rag doll is an attractive, perky looking four foot companion for a preteen child, while the 20 inch is sweet and cuddlesome, small enough to be snuggled up to by a toddler.
Well-Made did not file a copyright application for registration of the 48 inch doll.
The defendant manufactures and imports toys. It has been in the business of selling ragdolls since 1992. Among the dolls sold by Goffa was a small seated ragdoll (CL), which it copyrighted in 1996.
Douglas Song, President of defendant Goffa, learned that a four foot tall rag doll (plaintiff's) was selling well in United States markets. He decided to introduce a competitive work. In April of 1998, he ordered his Shanghai factory to develop a prototype based on the face and hat of his CL Doll, and body parts from various other Goffa dolls. This factory had never manufactured rag dolls. Edward Sclier, defendant's general manager, testified that the factory employees were "not creative" when it came to product design, and that they "couldn't do much on their own."
Later that month, Mr. Song and Mr. Sclier attended a trade fair in China. There they noticed that a company named Hubei was exhibiting rag dolls of differing sizes; one doll in Hubei's catalogue appears to be a copy of plaintiff's 20 inch doll. Hubei was not displaying any 48 inch dolls at the fair, so Mr. Song requested that Hubei create a 48 inch sample and quote a price. Mr. Song testified that while at the fair he did not view the Hubei catalogue, but that seems doubtful since he was there to see what was...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Mays & Associates, Inc. v. Euler, No. CIV. RDB 05-437.
...is registered upon filing a completed application with the United States Copyright Office. See e.g., Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Intern. Corp. 210 F.Supp.2d 147, 157 (E.D.N.Y.2002); Int'l Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning Ass'n v. Power Washers of N. Am., 81 F.Supp.2d 70 (D.D.C.2000); Havens v......
-
Cosmetic Ideas Inc v. Iac/interactivecorp.
...F.Supp.2d 630, 633-34 (M.D.N.C.2004); Forasté v. Brown Univ., 248 F.Supp.2d 71, 77-78 (D.R.I.2003); Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Int'l Corp., 210 F.Supp.2d 147, 157 (E.D.N.Y.2002), aff'd, 354 F.3d 112 (2d Dielsi v. Falk, 916 F.Supp. 985, 994 n. 6 (C.D.Cal.1996); Havens v. Time Warner, ......
-
Blakeman v. The Walt Disney Co.
...Publ'ns, Inc. v. Rural Tel. Serv. Co., 499 U.S. 340, 361, 111 S.Ct. 1282, 113 L.Ed.2d 358 (1991)); see Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Int'l Corp., 210 F.Supp.2d 147, 158 (E.D.N.Y.2002). For the purposes of the instant motion, defendants do not contest that plaintiff has a valid copyright......
-
Mattel Inc. v. Mga Ent. Inc.
...purely utilitarian elements; and (3) elements of expression merged with the underlying idea. See Well–Made Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Intern. Corp., 210 F.Supp.2d 147, 160–161 (E.D.N.Y.2002); see also Apple Computer, Inc. v. Microsoft Corp., 35 F.3d 1435, 1444 (9th Cir.1994). Because both the ......
-
COPYRIGHT AND THE BRAIN.
...(61.) Lyons P'ship v. Morris Costumes, Inc., 243 F.3d 789, 801 (4th Cir. 2001); see also WellMade Toy Mfg. Corp. v. Goffa Int'l Corp., 210 F. Supp. 2d 147, 161-62 (E.D.N.Y. 2002) (stating that a "specialized intended audience" test "has not taken root in the Second (62.) Copeland v. Bieber,......