Introduction

A big fight is coming up. You run a small restaurant, diner, sports club, or other establishment offering entertainment. Hey, the big fight is coming up on Friday. Why not buy the fight from a site like ESPN+ and pay $70 bucks for the residential version, and take that into your bar or lounge and show it to your customers for FREE. They will LOVE YOU!! Besides, who is really looking at you? You are just a small establishment after all in a big world.

Armed with this enthusiasm, you decide to advertise the fight on your Facebook page. For example, I expect this will happen on the Netflix Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight. #TysonFight #MacsPub #BoxingMatch

Well, next thing you know, Joe Hand hires a SUPER SNOOPER to come into your establishment and start taking photos and videos of you showing the fight on 5 or 10 of your televisions. Now, they have the evidence, and your bar will likely get what we not-s0-affectionally refer to as “the love letter” demand you pay them thousands ($20,000 to even $50,000 are demands I have seen over the years from the distributors such as Joe Hand, J&J Sports, and G&G Closed Circuit Events). Heck, one of the attorneys for one of these companies is known to call you up on the phone and make a large demand. Imagine getting this call.

Well, this is a real common situation that we deal with here at Vondran Legal® month in and month out. One of the main questions we get when potential clients call me is, “What am I looking at here? What do I have to pay to get this case settled?” As always, that can depend on a few factors; let’s take a quick look at these.

Potential Damages in a Boxing Piracy Case under 42 U.S.C. 603 and 553.

Watch video here.

Here is Attorney Steve® Top 5 Tips for Boxing Piracy Settlements.

1. Having a good reason for showing the fight unauthorized might help (note, there are few good ones).
2. The smaller your establishment capacity is, this can be a factor leading to a lower settlement (ex., “we only have capacity for 25 people and there were only 5 here on the night in question).
3. If you advertised the fight on Facebook, TikTok, Youtube, or Instagram, this can be used against you to justify a higher settlement.
4. If you had a cover charge and drink premiums, you can expect to pay a higher settlement (after all, they say “why should you profit commercially off our fight without paying the proper commercial licensing fee).
5. If you buy fights from the other distributors (such as J&J Sports or G&G Closed Circuit), in my opinion these companies seem to collaborate together, and if one tells the other, “Yeah, they buy fights from us now and then,” this will establish your willful intent to unlawfully broadcast the fight since you know a commercial license is required.
6. If you have financial difficulties (we see this often with new startup clubs, bars, and restaurants) and are willing to provide tax returns and bank statements to prove your hardship, this could lead to a lower settlement.

So, the range I can see anywhere from a low of $3,500 on up to $35,000. It all depends on the various factors.

Sample settlements

Here are a few cases you can look up to see more facts of these piracy cases and here are what we believe are the settlement outcomes. As you can see there are a lot of $20,000 judgements. This can also happen when a party chooses to default if a complaint is filed, and they file many complaints across the United States. See more about Default Judgment here.

• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Pine Lounge Private Club, Inc. et al., No. 3:22-cv-01016-G (N.D. Tex. August 17, 2022) (Final Default Judgment) (Fish, J.) – $60,000.00 plus interest, costs and attorneys’ fees.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Tejano Cowboy’s Lounge, LLC., et al., No. 3:18-cv-03244-M (N.D. Tex. July 10, 2019) (Order Granting Default Judgment) (Lynn, J.) – $20,000.00 plus attorney’s fees, costs and interest.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v Leech, et al., No. 3:18-cv- 03081-B (N.D. Tex. July 16, 2019) (Final Judgment) (Boyle, J.) – $20,000.00 plus interest, costs and attorney’s fees.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Emelike, et al., No. 3:14-cv-04350-D (N.D. Tex. March 16, 2016) (Judgment) (Fitzwater, J.) – $60,000.00 plus attorney’s fees and interest.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. 7 Stars Liquor, LLC, et al., No. 4:23-cv-00092-P (N.D. Tex. October 4, 2023) (Final Judgment) (Pittman, J.) – $20,000.00 plus attorney’s fees and costs.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Monrovia Lounge, LLC, et al., No. 3:23-cv-02516-G (N.D. Tex. January 19, 2024) (Final Default Judgment) (Fish, J.) – $60,000.00 plus interest, costs, and attorney’s fees.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Rosario Limon Enterprises, Inc., et al., No. 4:18-cv-00861-A (N.D. Tex. May 2, 2019) (Final Default Judgment) (McBryde, J.) – $61,950.00 plus interest.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Emelda Aguirre, et al., No. 2:22-cv-00111-Z-BR, 2022 WI, 17631518, *4 (N.D. Tex. December 13, 2022) (Memorandum Opinion and Order, Final Judgment) (Kacsmaryk, J.) – $60,000.00 plus interest, costs and attorney’s fees.
• Joe Hand Promotions, Inc. v. Villa Lounge, Inc., et al., No. 3:21-cv-03031-G (N.D. Tex. March 17, 2022) (Default Judgment) (Fish, Jr.) – $60,000.00 plus interest, costs and attorney’s fees.

Joe Hand has rights to the Mike Tyson vs. Paul Jake Commercial Fight (GET THE RIGHTS LEGALLY)!!

While the fight is available to Netflix subscribers at home, Joe Hand is Offering the fight for business establishments.

Per their website:

Joe Hand Promotions, the global leader in live sports viewing for the hospitality market, which includes bars, restaurants, and casinos, is proud to announce that Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson and Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano 2, a Netflix and Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) global live sports event, will be available to establishments across the United States. The event will exclusively stream live globally on Netflix on Friday, November 15, 2024 from the 80,000-seat capacity AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.

Bars, restaurants, and other commercial locations with DIRECTV for BUSINESS can only order the landmark event by clicking here, or by calling Joe Hand Promotions at 1-800-557-4263. For more information, please visit www.JoeHandPromotions.com.

The price for this event is based upon the Fire Code Occupancy of your business.

Price starting at $300.00. I know I haven’t watched a fight for years, but being a big Tyson fan, I am on this one (via residential Netflix).

1. The so-called internet defense
2. G&G Closed Circuit Events default judgement
3. Joe Hand Promotions in the Copyright Claims Board
4. Potential copyright infringement penalties
5. Possible defenses in J&J Sports Production cases