2GIG responds to Honeywell lawsuit with counterclaims

NEW YORK—Is 2GIG Technologies infringing on a Honeywell patent with its GO!Control security system? Or is Honeywell simply trying to put a competitor out of business? There were more developments in the case this week.

On Dec. 15, 2GIG filed its response and counterclaims to the Honeywell patent-infringement lawsuit filed here on Nov. 24. In this newest filing, 2GIG denies infringing on the patent, and says the patent in question—the so-called 148 Patent—was not legally issued and is therefore not enforceable.

Further, 2GIG claims that Honeywell itself expressed interest in 2GIG's technology when 2GIG launched its GO!Control panel in the spring of 2009. The filing says Honeywell met with 2GIG and “obtained its confidential technical information, its confidential financial information, and confidential business information about 2GIG's customers, its business strategy, and 2GIG's ownership structure.”

Honeywell did this, the filing charges, “not to pursue a legitimate business relationship with 2GIG, but rather to obtain information that it would later use against 2GIG in its efforts to disrupt 2GIG's relationships with its customers.”

Asked for comment, Jim Green, Honeywell's business communications leader, told Security Systems News, “2GIG's allegations regarding Honeywell are without basis and nothing more than an attempt to avoid the consequences of their infringing activity.” Honeywell filed this suit, Green said, “in order to protect its rights in its security system innovations and developments. Honeywell invests hundreds of millions of dollars every year in innovation and technology and protects that investment through vigorous pursuit of those who infringe its patents.”

To support its charge that Honeywell illegally interfered with 2GIG's potential customers, the filing says Honeywell told those customers that “Honeywell has a valid patent infringement claim when Honeywell knows that claim to be meritless.” The filing also asserts that Honeywell said, “2GIG will be unable to meet these customers' future product needs because of the lawsuit … [and said 2GIG and its suppliers] do not have the financial wherewithal or manufacturing capacity to meet prospective customer needs.” Honeywell also, according to the filing, “employed additional further falsehoods and misrepresentations in an effort to disrupt 2GIG's prospective business relations with potential customers.”

Asked for further information, Todd Santiago, 2GIG Technologies president, said, “We will let the contents of our recent filing speak for themselves. We remain confident in our position and are excited about our new products. As we stated before, we feel this suit is frivolous and an attempt to squash legitimate competition by a newcomer. We are committed to vigorously defending our position.”

2GIG Technologies has hired the New York law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges, which has represented clients such as Microsoft and Cisco in patent infringement cases.