Iomega Corp has turned out to be the mystery buyer of the assets of its one-time proudest competitor, Syquest Inc, and yesterday revealed that it had agreed to pay $9.5m in cash for the Fremont California-based removable storage firm. As part of the agreement, the two have also agreed to drop their ongoing patent and trademark infringement lawsuits taken out in Delaware and Paris. Syquest filed a motion on January 12 in the US Bankruptcy Court seeking approval for the sale, which includes all intellectual property rights, its IS inventory and its US fixed assets. Iomega is also considering the acquisition of the inventory and equipment assets of Syquest’s Malaysian subsidiary. Other offers were also considered, said the company. Syquest, still under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, will retain its accounts receivable, claims for tax and other refunds to provide more cash for creditors beyond the Iomega sale, but said once again that shareholders are unlikely to see any return. The company continues limited sales and support operations (CI No 3,570), including online support, warranty returns and product servicing. The Bankruptcy Court has scheduled a hearing for January 19 to establish the procedures of the sale.
