Best Buy Stole Trade Secrets, And Is Fined $27M

First Round Capital and NEA decided to proceed with a lawsuit against Best Buy, after that retail chain apparently stole the analytics and business plan of Techforward, a startup funded by the two venture firms. The evidence is amazingly blatant, especially emails leading up to Best Buy launching its own nationwide buy-back program, and pulls in $140M.

Josh Koppelman, Why First Round Capital funded a lawsuit

[…] after 18 months in court, a nine-person jury found Best Buy liable for misappropriation of TechForward’s trade secrets and breach of contract, and returned a verdict of $22 million in favor of TechForward.  And the jury also found by clear and convincing evidence that Best Buy did so willfully and maliciously, so the judge awarded an additional $5 million in punitive damages.

Best Buy deserves to go out of business. And anyone considering participation in the College Innovators Fund — innovative ideas from college students — should walk away from these crooks.

Source: redeye.firstround.com

6 December 2012 13
techforwardbest buytrade secretsjosh koppelmannewfirst round capital

Notes

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    we can put 1000s...work, seems like a good idea, justice was served.
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