16.  To become a member on LinkedIn, Plaintiff and the Class  members were required to complete a form on the LinkedIn website,  www.linkedin.com, that required them to enter their first name, last name, email  address, and password for their LinkedIn account.  There is no charge to become a  LinkedIn member although LinkedIn sells a “Premium Subscription” for which  users are billed monthly.  Once these fields were entered, the member clicked “Join  LinkedIn” button and an account was created.  By clicking the “Join now” button,  the member “agree[s] to LinkedIn’s User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie  Policy.”     17.  LinkedIn’s current Privacy Policy states:  Sharing Information with Third Parties  …   We will not disclose personal information that is not published to your  profile or generated through engagement with our other services, such  as Groups and Company Pages, except to carry out your instructions  (for example, to process payment information) or unlesss [sic] we have  your separate consent unless we have a good faith belief that  disclosure is permitted by law or is reasonably necessary to: (1)  Case5:15-cv-00236   Document1   Filed01/16/15   Page7 of 20 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  35.  Plaintiff brings this lawsuit, both individually and as a class  action, on behalf of similarly situated individuals, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil  Procedure 23(b)(2) and (3).    Case5:15-cv-00236   Document1   Filed01/16/15   Page13 of 20 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  45.  Plaintiff realleges and incorporates by reference the allegations  contained in the paragraphs above as if fully set forth herein.   46.  California’s Common Law Right of Publicity law protects  persons from the unauthorized appropriation of the person’s identity by another for  commercial gain.  Case5:15-cv-00236   Document1   Filed01/16/15   Page16 of 20 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  57.  Plaintiff realleges and incorporates the above allegations by  reference as if fully set forth herein.   58.  Plaintiff asserts this claim for violation of California Business  and Professions Code § 17200 on behalf of himself and the members of the Class.   59.  California Business & Professions Code § 17200 prohibits, inter  alia, any “unlawful . . . business act or practice.”  Defendant has violated § 17200’s  prohibition against engaging in unlawful acts and practices by violating the  California Common Law Right of Publicity.   60.  Plaintiff has an interest in controlling the use of his name and  likeness.  In violation of Plaintiff’s interest, LinkedIn exercised control over the use  of Plaintiff’s name and likeness to exploit it for profit without seeking Plaintiff’s  consent.  The unauthorized use of Plaintiff’s name and likeness to further  LinkedIn’s commercial interests constitutes “unfair” business acts or practices  within the meaning of California Business & Professions Code § 17200, et seq., in  that its conduct is substantially injurious to its members, offends public policy, and  is immoral, unethical, oppressive, and unscrupulous, as the gravity of the conduct  outweighs any alleged benefits attributable to such conduct.   61.  There were reasonably available alternatives to further  LinkedIn’s legitimate business interests other than the conduct described herein.   62.  LinkedIn’s conduct caused and continues to cause substantial  injury to Plaintiff and other Class members.  Plaintiff has suffered injury in fact by,  inter alia, losing money and having his professional reputation diminished as a  result of LinkedIn’s conduct.  Case5:15-cv-00236   Document1   Filed01/16/15   Page18 of 20 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  For Violations of California’s Common Law Right of Publicity  (On behalf Plaintiff and the Class)   Unlawful Business Acts and Practices in Violation of California Business  and Professions Code 17200, et seq.  (On behalf of Plaintiff and the Class against LinkedIn)  