Amplidata Prevails in Bet-the-Company Patent Infringement Suit

San Francisco – March 23, 2015 – Cooley successfully represented Amplidata in a bet-the-company competitor suit, defeating patent infringement claims filed by Cleversafe in the Northern District of Illinois.

Amplidata's patented Distributed Storage System (DSS) solves the scalability and reliability problems of traditional storage systems. Cleversafe claimed Amplidata's DSS infringed four patents and sought a permanent injunction. A win for Cleversafe could have put Amplidata, a Belgian startup, out of business.

Judge Lee agreed with Cooley on every material claim term, which in effect knocked out all of the patents in suit. Cleversafe conceded defeat in early 2015, stipulating that Amplidata did not infringe any of the patents in suit. The case is currently on appeal.

Following the successful resolution of the district court case, Western Digital Technologies, Inc., one of the largest computer hard disk drive manufacturers in the world, announced that its subsidiary, HGST, would acquire Amplidata for an undisclosed amount. The transaction closed at the beginning of March 2015.

"Cooley demonstrated a superior level of skill and experience every step of the way," said Amplidata CEO, Mike Wall. "We are indebted to Cooley for its faith in our company and in our technology, and for standing by us when we needed it most. Without this victory, our acquisition by Western Digital would not have been possible."

The Cooley litigation team was led by IP partners Tom Friel and Chris Campbell and included associates Stephen Crenshaw and Kevin Lake.

The Cooley M&A team advising Amplidata on its acquisition by Western Digital included partner and head of Cooley's business department Fred Muto, partner Jamie Leigh and special counsel Charles Haley, alongside the company's Belgian counsel.

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