Following the decision by the Taiwan prosecutor to pursue criminal proceedings against a subsidiary of Asustek Computer and four of that subsidiary’s employees for the alleged misappropriation of trade secrets from VIA Technologies, VIA has announced that it has filed a civil suit in the Taipei District Court seeking damages of at least NT$4.137 billion (US$138 million) from Asustek Computer and its subsidiary Asmedia Technology.
The lawsuit is being filed to recover the losses incurred as a result of the alleged misappropriation of VIA intellectual property related to USB technology.
“As a long-time leader in IC design and technology innovation, VIA strongly believes in the importance of protecting intellectual property rights. In addition to protecting interests of VIA and our shareholders, the aim of this suit is to ensure our industry operates in a healthy market environment that fosters innovation and promotes fair competition,” commented Wenchi Chen, CEO, VIA Technologies.
Taiwan amended its Trade Secret Act earlier this year to enhance its IP protection laws. One key reform included increasing the penalties for intellectual property crimes, so anyone who misappropriates trade secrets in Taiwan with the intent to use them overseas may be imprisoned for up to 10 years and fined up to US$1.7 million, or possibly more if there are substantial illicit gains.
The lawsuit alleges that a former VIA executive, Chewei Lin, left VIA in 2007 and joined Asmedia (controlled by Asus Group), taking dozens of VIA employees with him, and also VIA’s intellectual property related to USB technology, including host controllers and device controllers.
