June 10, 2012
Technion sues Microsoft over intellectual property
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Technion – Israel Institute of Technology - Campus
The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology has filed a $6.5 million lawsuit against the Microsoft Corp.
The lawsuit, filed last week in the Central District Court in Petach Tikvah, alleges that Microsoft used intellectual property developed by a Technion professor, the business daily Globes reported.
The case centers on Microsoft’s $150 million acquisition of YaData, which the Technion says employed Rann Smorodinsky, a full-time tenured professor in the School of Industrial Engineering, even though the school does not allow its staff to work for other employers without written approval.
In its complaint, the Technion said it warned Microsoft before its purchase of YaData that the institute’s rights had been violated, but Microsoft ignored the warnings, Globes reported. Smorodinsky’s involvement in the development of Microsoft’s online marketing software allegedly exceeded the permission he was granted by the Technion.
