Cognizant sues Infosys for alleged trade secret violations

Cognizant has sued Infosys in a federal court in Texas over what it accuses to be theft of trade secrets concerning the healthcare insurance software. The complaint alleges that Infosys ‘unlawfully obtained and used’ private details of TriZetto’s Facets and QNXT applications, the former of which is popular with healthcare insurers for administrative and billing operations. Infosys was accused by Cognizant of using this cross-selling data to produce similar and sometimes superior services and products that provided them with an equation in the market place.
The compensation claim is for unspecified amount of money and a permanent injunction to restrain Infosys from utilising or transmitting the stolen trade secrets. Cognizant notes that the unlawful utilisation of its proprietary assets has substantially impacted its operations and position in the healthcare technology market.
However, in its defense, Infosys has categorically dismissed all the allegations describing the allegations as baseless and a violation of ethical and legal requirements on issues to do with Intellectual property and competition. Infosys also stated that they a prepared to fight the lawsuit with all their might while upholding their status as a leading, and responsible IT services firm.
This legal confrontation make it clear that the competitive nature of the international IT services market means that proprietary technologies are crucial to sustaining the competitive advantage. The result of this case might have significant consequences for both organisations, which include a shift in market shares, clients and future strategies. It also raises the general issue of protecting ideas and preventing the abuse of the market place as new technologies emerge.