Amdocs Ltd. (NYSE: DOX) described the case filed against them by Israeli startup T-Jat Systems (2006) Ltd. in New York as “deliberate, calculated, malicious sabotage.” Yesterday, Amdocs filed a counter-suit, against T-Jat and two of its managers, Gideon Drori and Oleg Golobrodsky in the Tel Aviv District Court. The amount of the claim has been set at NIS 20 million, in lieu of fees.
Amdocs, provider of software solutions for telecommunication companies, is represented by the legal firm Meitar Liquornik Geva Leshem Tal. Their claim is that T-Jat is deliberately sabotaging their business with a stated goal of extorting undeserved payments.
“Globes” previously revealed that T-Jat was suing Amdocs over claims of copyright infringement and copying the system that they developed, which had been revealed to Amdocs during a joint project between the two companies. T-Jat developed a system that organizes cell-phone contacts, and combines contacts from the phone with contacts from other sources, such as e-mail and social networks. Because of the lawsuit, the Asian telecom company SingTel cancelled a project with Amdocs that involved the disputed technology.
The complaint stated, “The defendants, using strategic timing aimed at maximizing the damage to Amdocs, began a smear campaign that included directly contacting Amdocs’ strategic partner and starting futile processes including arbitration, and requesting an injunction… and all the while spreading serious, unfounded and damaging claims against Amdocs.” Amdocs claims that the timing just a few days before the launch of the application LoopMe, which includes one of Amdocs’ products, by a “strategic customer” was calculated precisely to exact the “maximum damage” upon Amdocs. According to the company, “the defendants’ scheme was successful.”
Amdocs claims that the cancellation of the launch of the product in which millions of dollars had been invested, and to which dozens of Amdocs employees had devoted months and years, caused the company direct financial loss, caused the cancellation of the project, and harmed their relationship with their client. “Amdocs… tried to reach a compromise with the defendants; it offered, in accordance with the letter of the law, in order to eliminate all doubt, to completely remove T-Jat’s component from the product, it informed the defendant, verbally as well as in writing, of the tremendous damage that their actions are causing them. All this only increased the defendants’ appetites and worsened their extortionate activity,” according to the claim.
T-Jat said in response, "The suit (against Amdocs) is proceeding in the New York Federal Court. The only reason this suit was filed is to intimidate."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 23, 2013
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