SyQuest Technology Inc, which came very close indeed to buying the company late last year, is back in the courts with its French tormentor, Nomai SA of Avranches. Nomai takes the profit out of its exchangeable disk drives by making compatible cartridges. In the latest suit, the Fremont, California maker of cartridge drives charges Nomai with patent, copyright and trade mark infringement, breach of contract and unfair competition. The suit also names French distributor of Nomai products Electronique d2 SA, and its US affiliate LaCie Ltd. The suit alleges that Nomai attempted to capitalize on SyQuest’s innovation and technological leadership through unauthorized sale in the US of proprietary 3.5 and 5.25 replacement cartridges for SyQuest removable disk drives. As reported, SyQuest abandoned plans to acquire Nomai in November – seems majority shareholders of the French company attempted radically to alter the terms of the acquisition as set forth in a letter of intent that they had signed five days before, SyQuest alleges. The suit includes a claim for at least $2m damages for breach of contract arising from alleged breaches of the letter of intent.
