Jawbone files its second lawsuit against Fitbit

Fitness tracking designer Jawbone has filed its second lawsuit against industry rival Fitbit. The new lawsuit, coming in less than two weeks after the first, alleges that Fitbit infringed on Jawbone patents, and seeks a sales injunction as part of its damages. The patents in question specifically pertains to Jawbone's data management and tracking system, and claims that its violation covers most, if not all of Fitbit's wearable products. To date, Jawbone has invested over $100 million in research and development for its products.

Beyond pressing their case within the United States, Jawbone is also planning on taking its complaints as far as the International Trade Commission, which could result in Fitbit being unable to bring its products or parts into the U.S.

The first suit Jawbone filed claims that Fitbit poached their employees, and that the poached employees in turn stole confidential information from Jawbone and delivered it to Fitbit. Responding to both sets of allegations, Fitbit's attorneys said that they plan to "vigorously defend itself against these allegations," and that "Fitbit has no need to take information from Jawbone or any other company. We are unaware of any confidential or proprietary information of Jawbone in our possession."

The lawsuits have come as Fitbit plans to launch an IPO, which they expect will raise over $400 million in investments. This past year, they generated over $700 million in revenue, and made a net profit of approximately $132 million.

Patent infringement is a serious problem. If you think your intellectual property is being used without your permission, you should contact an experienced business attorney as soon as possible.

Categorised in: Business Law, Intellectual Property Law

This post was written by