Claiming that Epic Games’ “It’s Complicated” emote copied a portion of his “How High” choreography-specifically, the two-second, four-beat sequence during the hook at the beginning of the chorus, a sequence Hanagami referred to as the “steps”-Hanagami asserted claims for direct and contributory copyright infringement and unfair competition. Fortnite, a free-to-play multiplayer game taking place in a virtual world, allows players to purchase virtual items-including “emotes,” or animated movements and dances that Fortnite characters can perform-through an in-game marketplace. Hanagami published a five-minute video on YouTube in 2017 featuring himself and others dancing to the song “How Long” by Charlie Puth in 2021, he registered the “How Long” choreography with the U.S. Plaintiff, professional dancer and choreographer Kyle Hanagami, brought suit against Epic Games Inc., asserting that the video game developer and distributor copied a portion of plaintiff’s copyrighted dance moves in the popular game Fortnite. Fortnite -maker Epic Games wins dismissal of copyright claims brought by professional dancer and choreographer after district court concludes that his two-second series of dance steps, replicated as virtual dance for purchase in Fortnite, was not protectable under copyright law.

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