Michigan State sued for copyright infringement over Adolf Hitler question shown at football game

Michigan State is facing a copyright infringement lawsuit over the controversial Adolf Hitler question shown at a football game last fall, according to a report from the Lansing State Journal.

The Spartans suspended an employee for showing the question, which asked about the German dictator’s birthplace, on the video board before a contest against Michigan on Oct. 21, 2023. But now even more consequences could come from the blunder as “The Quiz Channel,” a YouTube channel featuring several quizzes, claims the school never had permission to use its video.

Carsilius Media, the operator of The Quiz Channel based in the Netherlands, and its owner Floris van Pallandt claim Michigan State engaged in copyright infringement and invasion of privacy – false light.

Images of the quiz went viral at the time, prompting Michigan State to release a statement addressing why it was shown.

“MSU is aware that inappropriate content by a third-party source was displayed on the videoboard prior to the start of tonight’s football game,” the statement read. “We are deeply sorry for the content displayed, as this is not representative of our institutional values. MSU will not be using the third-party source going forward and will implement stronger screening and approval procedures for all videoboard content in the future.”

Van Pallandt claimed that with that statement, the university attempted to place the blame on him and his company despite never being granted permission to use the clip.

“Once this story became national and international news, Michigan State University’s first response was to attempt to place the blame on Plaintiffs, stating that the use of Hitler in the quiz was the fault of the company who created the quiz,” the lawsuit said.

Van Pallandt admitted that it was his company that created the quiz, but added that it was not intended for “mass market use at an American college football game.” He added that he would have been happy to create a custom trivia series for Michigan State had it asked him to do so for an “appropriate” fee.

However, since the university did not ask permission to use the video, he feels his company received some of the negative backlash. He is seeking actual damages at trial or a civil fine of $150,000 for the copyright infringement.

“Given the timing of the football game, approximately two weeks after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, the inclusion of a question regarding Adolf Hitler during the Michigan-Michigan State football game garnered an extremely high degree of attention, most of it negative,” the suit claims.

MSU spokesperson Mark Bullion told the State Journal that the university is aware of the lawsuit, but will not be commenting on it.