Fitbit (NYSE:FIT) yesterday beat rival Jawbone‘s accusations that it stole trade secrets for its wearable fitness tracking device when a judge for the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled that there were no violations of the Tariff Act because “no party has been shown to have misappropriated any trade secret.”
The decision by Judge Dee Lord spikes Jawbone’s attempt to block imports of the Fitbit devices, part of its ITC complaint alleging that Fitbit infringes 6 of its patents and poached workers who brought confidential data with them when they jumped ship – including plans, supply chains and technical details.
But Jawbone withdrew 2 of the patents and Lord ruled the remaining 4 invalid ahead of a May trial on the trade secret accusations.
“From the outset of this litigation, we have maintained that Jawbone’s allegations were utterly without merit and nothing more than a desperate attempt by Jawbone to disrupt Fitbit’s momentum to compensate for their own lack of success in the market,” Fitbit CEO James Park said in prepared remarks.
The news sent FIT shares up 2.8% today in pre-market trading, to their opening price of $15.30 apiece. The stock gained 2.2% in early trading, rising to $15.20 per share.
Fitbit’s win comes after a loss last month in an ITC complaint it leveled against Jawbone, in which ITC Judge Thomas Pender invalidated a trio of Fitbit patents; Fitbit has asked the full commission to review that decision.
The companies are also sparring in state and federal court; Jawbone led with a trade secret violations case in California state court that’s still pending, as are patent infringement proceedings in federal court.
The post Fitbit escapes Jawbone’s trade secret theft claims appeared first on MassDevice.
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