ZoomInfo Loses Bid to Shake Claims Over Likenesses in Database

ZoomInfo Technology Inc. must face claims that it illegally used Californians’ names, photos, and likenesses in its advertisements to sell subscriptions to its database, according to the Ninth Circuit which refused to order the case be dismissed.

The speech is commercial in nature and therefore not protected under the California’s Anti-SLAPP law—a statute that restricts suits aimed at suppressing free speech, a three-judge panel on the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said.

When a user searches for an individual on a search engine or ZoomInfo, the database will display “teaser profiles” that show some information about the ...