Santa Clara, CA: Time Inc, is facing a unfair business practices class action lawsuit brought by a subscriber in Michigan who claims the media company sells her information and that of other subscribers to data miners without their consent.
Specifically, Carolyn Perlin, individually and for all others similarly situated, claims that over 90 Time magazines sell their subscribers' protected information, including full names, home addresses, and titles of magazines to which they subscribe, to supplement sales and advertising revenues. The information, according to the suit, is sold to data miners and other third party companies.
Further, the suit claims Time trades its subscribers' personal reading information with that obtained by other data miners and aggregators in order to supplement customer files with other sensitive data about them, including age, income level, purchasing habits and other information.
Perlin claims that Time does not notify or obtain permission from its subscribers, before disclosing personal reading information to third parties.
Perlin alleges unjust enrichment and violations of Michigan's Preservation of Personal Privacy Act. She and others in the class seek actual damages, disgorgement, injunctive and equitable relief, attorney fees and costs. The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Ari J. Scharg and Benjamin S. Thomassen of Edelson PC in Chicago, and by attorney Henry M. Scharg of the Law Office of Henry M. Scharg in Detroit. U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan Case number 2:16-CV-10635-MKM.
