The RSA Data Security Inc division of Security Dynamics Inc has sued Network Associates Inc again, this time over the licensing agreement it has with Trusted Information Systems Inc (TIS), which is now part of Network Associates. TIS uses RSA’s BSafe technology in most of its products, including its flagship Gauntlet firewall. But the licensing agreement specified that RSA has to re-approve the use of the technology should TIS be acquired, which it was in February. RSA has not given that permission yet and, claims RSA founder, president and CEO Jim Bidzos, the company has not had a lot of luck negotiating with Network Associates, and so it has sued. The two companies have another suit outstanding, between RSA and the Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) unit that Network Associates acquired last December. That has been on-going for more than a year now and, says Bidzos, RSA has just secured one of its demands, namely that Network Associates will conduct an audit of the money generated by sales of the PGP technology. RSA sued in May of last year for the alleged violation of an agreement between PGP and Public Key Partners – a partnership between RSA and Cylink Corp – which granted PGP a license to certain technologies. RSA alleged that PGP’s license had expired, but PGP carried on selling the products anyway and RSA thus demanded the royalties from those sales. PGP said the license agreement was still valid and therefore no royalties were due. The two companies are believed to be attempting to negotiate a settlement, but Bidzos indicated that very little progress has been made and that this new lawsuit will enter any discussions the pair have about resolving the PGP suit. Bidzos said the new suit doesn’t specifically require financial reparations from Network Associates, but said that might come later. Network Associates must give a response within a few weeks. The suit was filed in the federal court in San Francisco. Network Associates is itself the result of a merger last year between McAfee Associates Inc and Network General Co.
