Ayyadurai v. Floor64, Inc. et al

Filing 1

COMPLAINT against All Defendants Filing fee: $ 400, receipt number 0101-6439091 (Fee Status: Filing Fee paid), filed by Shiva Ayyadurai. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet, # 2 Exhibit, # 3 Exhibit, # 4 Exhibit, # 5 Exhibit, # 6 Exhibit, # 7 Exhibit, # 8 Exhibit, # 9 Exhibit, # 10 Exhibit, # 11 Exhibit, # 12 Exhibit, # 13 Exhibit, # 14 Exhibit, # 15 Exhibit, # 16 Exhibit, # 17 Exhibit, # 18 Exhibit, # 19 Exhibit, # 20 Exhibit, # 21 Exhibit)(Cornell, Timothy)

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Guv Who Didn't Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing

READ POSTS EARLY, JOIN THE INSIDER CHAT £ MORE

Out He Didn't Invent Email

: : inSIDER SHOP i»r

from the s/iira joumDi t AuB Imgmircflftcr dept

Oh boy Remember Shiva Ayyadurai? The guy who has gore to great Lengths to claim that he
Defamation
by Mike Mas nick
Wed, May 11th 2016
10:44am

"invented email," when the reality is that he appears to have (Likely independently) written an
early implementation of email long after others had actually "invented email," In the past we've
called out examples where gullible press have fallen for his easily debunked claims, but he keeps

i

x

1

popping back up, He somehow got an entire series into the Huffington Post, which was clearly
Filed Under:
defamation, email,

lawsuit, nick
ctenton, sam biddLe,

shiva ayyadurai

crafted as a PR exercise in trying to rewrite history The mainstream press repeated his bogus

claims about inventing email after he married a TV star. And, most recently he decided to
scream at the press for memorializing Ray Tbmlirson -- someone who actually did have a hard in

Permalink.
Short link.

53? "•*

*2.49
WITH CARD

creating email -- upon his death,

Companies:
gawker

1?

A.

If

WeVe gore through in great detail as to why Ayyadurai is simply wrong in his claims. There's a lot

Private Selection Salsa or
Mission Burrito Tortillas

m

more to it, but the summary we've written in the past is this:

j&tphs) ^owpire'i. BifBW
First off, no one denies tlwt VIA. Shiva Ayyadurai -- an apparently very bright 14-

Vaid until Dae. 13

year-old at the time -- wrote an email software program for the University of
Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) in 1978. By all accounts, it was a

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Essential Reading

perfectly decent email system that allowed the UMDNJ staff to send electronic
messages. Further, no one doubts that, in 1981, Ayyadurai registered the copyright

Hot Topics

on his program, which was called EMAIL. The problems are that (1) email was

invented long before 1978, (Z) the copyright is merely on the specific software code,

5.3

The FCC Suggests Some Wishy Washy,

not the idea of email, and (3) while Ayyadurai mayliave independently recreated the

Highly Unlikely Solutions To The

basics of email (and even added a nice feature), none of his work was even remotely

Poorly-Secured Internet Of Things

related to what later became the standards of email. IVtat's most sickening about

5.2 1 If You're Worried About What President

this is that as part of this new PR campaign, Ayyadurai is ridiculously arguing that

Trump Can Do To The Press, Blame

the reason no one believes him isn't because he's simply wrong, but because they

Resident Obama

can't stand to believe that "a dark-skinned immigrant kid, 14 years old," invented

email, and that it was done in "one of the poorest cities in the US" rather than at a
famous university

5.2

Judge Tosses Charges Against
Backpage Execs, Tells Kamala Harris
To Take It Up With Congress

Again, that might make for a nice story line if there were some factual basis behind
it, but there isn't. The history of email is well-documented from multiple sources

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and it began way, way before 1978. And while early versions were somewhat crude,

Explore some core concepts:

by 1978 they had basically everything that Ayyadurai claims to have invented (it is

Infinity Is Your Friend In Economics

entirely believable that Ayyadurai , as a bright kid, independently came up with the
same ideas, but he was tardy the first). There was a messaging system called

Advertising Is Content; Content Is

MAILBOX at MIT in 1965. Vbu can read all the details of it here, including source

Advertising

code. Ray Tomlinson is frequently credited with inventing the modern concept of
email for the internet by establishing the e symbol (in 1972) as a way of

Step One To Embracing A Lack Of Scarcity:
Recognize What Market You're Really In

determining both the user and which computer to send the email to. By 1975, there
read all »

were things like email folders (invented by Larry Roberts) and some other basic

email apps. As is noted, by 1 976 -- two years before Ayyadurai wrote his app -- email

m.m;

was 75% of all ARPANET traffic.
For what it's worth, some have disputed the idea that he even added any features not existing in
previous discussions. Nevertheless, he's not the 'inventor" of email, no matter how many times he
claims he is,
We, of course, have not been alone in debunking his claims. Back in 2012, a few weeks after we

first debunked them, Gawker's Sam Biddle did a long and thorough takedown of Ayyadurai's
claims. Apparently that story really angers Ayyadurai, and I'm guessing that seeing Hulk Hogan win
his crazy lawsuit against Gawker helped Ayyadurai to decide to sue Gawker as well,
And, in keeping with my belief that this is all one giant PR stunt, the lawsuit filing was
accompanied by a press release that repeats the same debunked claims, and selectively quotes

Document title: Guy Who Didn't Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn't Invent Email || Techdirt
Document title: Guy Who Didn't Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn't Invent Email Techdirt
Capture URL: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20160511/10135934407/guy-who-didnt-invent-email-sues-gawker-pointing-out-he-didnt-invent-email.shtml
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Capture timestamp (UTC): Mon, 12 Dec 2016 22:06:30 GMT
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Page 1 of 13

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previous discussions. Nevertheless, he's not the "inventor" of email, no matter how many times he

claims he is,
We, of course, have not been alone in debunking his claims. Back in 2012, a few weeks after we

w,

first debunked them, Gawker's Sam Biddle did a long and thorough takedown of Ayyadurai's
claims. Apparently that story really angers Ayyadurai, and I'm guessing that seeing Hulk Hogan win

Qfi

his crazy lawsuit against Gawker helped Ayyadurai to decide to sue Gawker as well.

And, in keeping with my belief that this is all one giant PR stunt, the lawsuit filing was
accompanied by a press release that repeats the same debunked claims, and selectively quotes

2

the very media he fooled as evidence that he really invented email, The actual lawsuit is a joke.

SERVICE
BUNDLE

BUY NOW

As in the Hogan case, Ayyadurai is suing not just Gawker, but also the company's founder Nick

Denton, along with the author of the articles {in this case, Sam Biddle),

VPN Unlimited & To Do

The filing again Lays out Ayyadurai's highly misleading version of history insisting again that

Checklist: Lifetime

getting the copyright on a program called EMAIL is the equivalent of "inventing" email. He
continues to conflate patent and copyright Law and misleadingly claim that because you couldn't

Subscription Bundle

get a patent on software at the time, a copyright is basically the same thing, This is wrong on
both counts, >bu oouild patent some software at the time, and either way a copyright is nowhere
Report this at)

near the equivalent. He also relies on debunked reports in Time Magazine and CBS, And also
Wired, though he leaves out that Wired was just quoting Noam Chomsky, who bizarrely has

|

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become one of Ayyadurai's biggest defenders, and that the Wired story includes other evidence
"j

that Ayyadurai is wrong,
Ayyadurai claims that Gawker's articles were defamatory specifically stating:

http:tfnn.theregi5terco.uk/201 6J12/08/winter_i5_c< "
time for the touches and pitchforks. I think.
Dark Helmet: Touches and pitchforks is my
new favorite typo win

As described herein , the February 2012 Article arises to the level of defamation per

Jeffrey Nonken: hah

se, in that it falsely states that "[Dr.] Ayyadurai is a fraud. "

Wiell. mobile interface. That's my excuse.

As described herein, the March 2012 Article falsely alleges that:

wrong, of course... ASCAR and MRAA seen as

Vidiot: WaPo article on copyright fight gets it
the Office's only constituents. How about us

a) Dr. Ayyaduiw engaged in "semantic tiicks, falsehoods, and a

citizens instead?

b) Dr. Ayyadurai is engaged in "revisionism " in his claim of invention of

Iittps ://www.was hin gto n p o st. co rn.'n ews/a rtsandentertainrnent/wpJ2016J12/09Lcongressional-

email.

p a n e l-ca 1 1 s-fo r-i n d e p e n d e n t-co py ri g lit-oB ce

misinformation campaign. "

Mike Masnick: well, they do quote new head of

As described herein, the 2014 Articie arises to the level of defamation per se, by

the ALA too, and he's good
?

stating that Dr. Ayyadurai is a "fraud," thus falsely accusing Dr. Ayyadurai of a crime
and causing prejudice to his personal and professional reputation and business.

Join the Insider Chat
The 2014 Article a!st? falsely states:
a) Dr. Ayyadurai is a "renowned liar" with respect to his statements

that he invented emaii,

Advertisement

b) Dr. Ayyadurai is a "big fake, " and
c) Dr. Ayyadurai is engaged in "cyber-lies. "
These defamation claims seem extremely weak. First off, as the detailed records show, Ayyadlurai
did not invent email, So truth is generally a good response to defamation claims. Second, even if

he did create email (and he didnt), most of these statements would be protected as either
statements of opinion or rhetorical hyperbole. Finally, Ayyadurai as a self-proclaimed public

Plans starting at just

persona would have to show actual malice for it to be defamatory Hilariously the lawsuit claims
no actual malice is necessary which is nonsense, Ayyadurai is so focused on making himself a

$15/mo. No contracts.

famous person over his exaggerated claims to have invented email that for him to try to argue he's
not a public figure is laughable. His lawyers also show no evidence that there is actual malice from

Switch Today!

Gawker but insist that if they could get to the discovery phase, they could find evidence supporting
actual malice.

There are then three other claims: one for "intentional interference with prospective economic

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advantage," one for "intentional infliction of emotional distress" [the "my feelz!" argument), and
Recent Stories

one for (and I'm not kidding) "negligent hiring and retention,"
Ayyadurai goes into detail about how people pointing out that he is exaggerating his claims has

Monday

made people less willing to work with him. But that's not the fault of accurate reporting. Its the

1 3:09 "fv/o Former Senators Call On Obama To Save The

fault of him focusing so much on a false claim to have invented email.

Full ClAlbiture Report1 From Being Bulled (2)
1 1 :52 The FCC Suggests Some Wfehy Washy Highly
Unlikely Solutions "lb The Poorly- Secured Internet

T/ijs is the situation here: Defendants' false statements in the articles at issue had
the effect of so severely discrediting Dr. Ayyadurai-based on the false statement
that he is a "fraud"— that Dr. Ayyadurai's career was severely damaged. As a direct
result of Defendants' publication of the false and defamatory statements about Dr.

Ayyadurai , on information and belief, Dr. Ayyadurai has lost teaching positions at
MIT, lost several paid speaking engagements at the time and in the future , lost an

Off Things (13)
10:40 Iran The Latest Country "lb Use "Fake News As An
Excuse For Widespread Censorship (10)
10:38 Daily Deal: DashCam Hi-Res Car Video Camera And
SGB WkroSD Card (1 }

09:39 Georgia Secreta \y Of State Accuses DH5 Of

Document title: Guy Who Didn&#39;t Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn&#39;t Invent Email || Techdirt
Document title: Guy Who Didn&#39;t Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn&#39;t Invent Email Techdirt
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Page 2 of 13

made people less willing to work with him. But chat's not the fault of accurate reporting. It's the

1 3:09 Two Former Senators Call On Obama To Save The
Full ClA'Tbiture Report' From Beire Bulled (2)

fault of him focusing so much on a false claim to have invented email.

1 1 :EI The FCC Suggests Borne Ytfchy Washy Highly
Unlikely Solutions To The Poorly-Secured Internet

This is the situation here: Defendants' false statements in the articles at issue had

the effect of so severely discrediting Dr. Ayyadurai—based on the false statement

Of Things 113)
10:40 Iran The Latest CountiyTb Use Fake Hews As An

that he is a "fraud"— that Dr. Ayyadurai's career was severely damaged, As a direct
result of Defendants' publication of the false and defamatoiy statements about Dr.

Excuse For Widespread Censorship 110)
10:38

Ayyaaurai, on information and belief, Dr. Ayyadurai has lost teaching positions at
MIT, lost several paid speaking engagements at the time and in the future, lost an

8GB MicraSD Card (1 )
09:39 Georgia Secretary Of State Accuses OHS Of

accolade and display dedicated to his invention at the Smithsonian Institute, lost
contracts and renewais, lost opportunities for investment in his emeiging companies,

suffered substantial personal and professional reputational haim, and suffered
substantial barm to his career, business and income.

Daily Deal: DashCam Hi-Res Car Video Camera And

Breaching Bis Office's Firewall (14)
08:31

If hbuTe Wor ried About What Resident T ump Can
Do To The Press, Blame Resident Obama (40)

08:29 Judge Tosses Char ges Against Backpage Execs,

I'm sure that's distressing, but it's not the fault of Gawker for pointing out that Ayyadurai was

Tells Kamala Harris To Take It Up With Congress
114)

exaggerating what he did. It's what happens when you exaggerate like that and make grandiose
03:25 More Rosecutors Refuse To Accept Guilty Pleas

claims that are not accurate,

Based On Faulty 52 Field Drug Tests 111)

The "negligent hiring" claims seems to just be an attempt to attack and mock Sam Biddle. I'm not

a Sam Biddle fan by any stretch of the imagination, I think he has a history of taking things
completely out of context and creating sensational posts that are misleading, at best, But that's

Sunday
12:00 Funniest/ Most Insightful Comments Of The Vteek
At Techdiit (5)

not defamation, It's just bad reporting. And Ayyadurai's claims about "negligent hiring" basically

accuse Biddle of being a drug addict and, potentially, mentally unstable. That claim is not going to

Saturday

last very Long and seems to serve no purpose other than to attack Biddle's reputation.

12:00 This Week In Techdirt History: SQFft, China, Dajazl
& The Hypocrisy Of Copyright <2)

The filing also spends a ton of completely wasted space on other lawsuits against Gawker, as if
trying to prove that the company has a history of bad actions, But the litany of bad actions Listed
are extremely exaggerated. Yes, Gawker has been sued for defamation, but Gawker has not lost

More ©
Advertisement

those cases and they are extremely unlikely to lose them, I mean, you're reaching really really low

[>

if you're citing Chuck Johnson's laughable defamation lawsuit against Gawker that has already
been tossed out of a Missouri court for being ridiculous. And yes, Johnson also filed an identical

case in California, but it's going nowhere [it was so identical that it focused on the harms in
Missouri, despite being filed in California), But Ayyadurai's lawyers pretend that it's evidence of
Gawker's defamatory history:

Gawker has been sued multiple times for defamation, including currently in an

Plans starting at just

action in New Ybrk State Court, by the Doily Mail newspaper, and in an action in

$15/mo. No contracts.

California by an individual named Charles Johnson, for writing and publishing false
and unsubstantiated rumots that Mr. Johnson had been involved in misconduct and

criminal activity

Switch Today!

The lav/suit also cites a variety of other lav/suits involving Gawker that have nothing to do with

defamation at all, including (obviously) the Hulk Hogan case that will almost certainly be

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overturned on appeal, and also a copyright lawsuit from Dr. Phil and a few other examples of

people being unhappy with Gawker's coverage.
This case should go nowhere fast, and Ayyadurai may be opening himself up to a world of hurt in
exposing himself to discovery, should the case even reach that stage. Unfortunately for Gawker,
Massachusetts - where Ayyadurai filed this lawsuit -- has an anti-SLAPP statute that is much more
limited and unfortunately may not be that helpful to Gawker, Yet another reason why we need a

federal anti-SLAPP law as soon as possible.

DOCUMENT

PAGES

Zoom

TEXT

Case 1: 16-cv- 10853 JC6

Document 1

, , ,

(Q. Search

Filed 05/10/16

Page lot 23

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT (IF MASSACHUSETTS

BOSTON. MASSACHUSETTS

SHIVA AYYADURAI. an individual.
Plaintiff,

)

CASE NO.

i
>

COMPLAINT

v.

GAWKER MEDIA, LLC, a Delaware

)
>

limited liability company; SAM BIDDLE. an

}

individual. JOHN COOK, an indiv idml.

)

NICHOLAS GUIDO ANTHONY DENTON.

DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL

)

an individual, and DOES 1-3J.

>
)
Defendants.,

Document title: Guy Who Didn&#39;t Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn&#39;t Invent Email || Techdirt
Document title: Guy Who Didn&#39;t Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn&#39;t Invent Email Techdirt
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SHIVA At YAULIKAI. an individual.

L AS E -VU:

>

Plaintiff,

)
>

GAWKER MEDIA. LLC, a Delaware

)
)
)

COMPLAINT

)
v.

limited liability company: 5AM B1DDLE. an

DEMAND FOR J DRY TRIAL

.1

individual. JOHN COOK, an indit idiul.

)

NICHOLAS GUIDO ANTHONY DENTON. )
on individual, and DOES l-20f

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Defendant)-'.

>

Plaintiff Dr. Shiva Ayyadimii. by and through his undersigned atlorncy^, sue* Defendants
Gawker Media, LLC. Sam Binldlc. John Cook. NKtwhs Guide* Anthony Denton, unl DOES 1-20
(collectively. "Defendants".!, and respectfully makes die following allegations.

SI.MHARHWTia'.t-Affi

i.

Dr Ayyadurai is a wirU-rmwnfd wicrtiM. inventor, lecturer, ptiilauithrnpisi and

entrepreneur. In 1978, Dr. Ayyadunu iavetrcd email: ihe electronic mail, system as we know it
* j*

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44 Comments | Leave a Comment

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If you liked this: post, you may also be interested in...

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Here's The Truth: Shiva Ayyadurai Didn't Invent Email

Reader Comments

View by: Time | Thread

J.

DB (profile), f 1 May 2016 i© 10:58am

Subscribe: RSS

O1

*1131*1

a

»

m

To be clear, he wrote a program that he named "EMAIL*, despite it not having the essential elements of a real email
system.

It was more like a cubbyhole system at a rural general store than a mail system. It worked only within a single
machine with a fixed set of known users. It never had to deal with the challenges of queuing, batch delivery,

handling different address formats, etc. that were the challenging problems.
[ reply to this I link to this I view in chronology ]

1.

Mason Wheele-r (profile), )? May 2016 g D.-Ofarr

r~+ 1 si + 1

a

»

m

In Hindu mythology; isn't Shiva the name of The Destroyer?

Just saying...
[ reply to this I link to thH I view in chronology ]

Document title: Guy Who Didn&#39;t Invent Email Sues Gawker For Pointing Out He Didn&#39;t Invent Email || Techdirt
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