Other employees wandered over as well. Indeed, according to XIOtech CFO Steve Snyder, his company's suit doesn't name the two companies' founders specifically in its complaints. Instead, it names four former employees who aren't Compellent founders, along with Compellent itself. The employees are accused by XIOtech of violating terms of noncompete agreements with their former employer.
XIOtech also has beefs about the alleged straying of its intellectual property, meaning patents pending or trade secrets, to the newer startup. Again, specifics are unavailable. Neither company actually has patents in the online records of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office -- not yet, anyway. But both compete in the SAN space, with claims to offer modular, simple-to-use systems aimed specifically at the small-to-medium-sized enterprise (see Compellent and XIOtech Stresses Simple SANs).
Apparently, XIOtech stewed over Compellent's complaint awhile before deciding to up the ante by filing a motion on Friday, April 2, not just with its attorneys and Compellent's but also with Hennepin County Court in Minnesota. Both companies are located in the Minneapolis area.
Part of the filing, according to XIOtech's Snyder, included a motion to dismiss Compellent's accusations as being without merit. Compellent filed a countermotion in Minnesota state court. Now, the case is on its way to being a full-blown legal battle.
There's nothing unusual in all this. The storage market is full of litigation involving patents and cross-company disputes of various kinds (see SOS Loses Appeal in HDS Lawsuit, WD Settles Cirrus Lawsuit, Crossroads Sues Dot Hill, and Nishan Founder: VCs Screwed Me).
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