Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Atmel - the trend is about to change -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: andy kelly who wrote (7432)	11/26/1997 7:45:00 PM
From: kirk tostige	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13565

US Market \| Industry \| IPO \| S&P \| International \| PRNews \| BizWire \| Finance Home ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wednesday November 26, 6:07 pm Eastern Time Company Press Release SOURCE: Atmel Corporation Atmel Files Suit Against Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation in Colorado Springs SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Atmel Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML - news) announced today that it has filed an action against Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation and three former management-level Atmel employees in El Paso Country District Court, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Atmel's complaint raises several claims against Vitesse and the key employees recruited from Atmel, focusing on misappropriation of Atmel's proprietary information, know-how and business value by unfair and wrongful means. In the lawsuit, Atmel alleges improper solicitation and hiring by Vitesse and the former, key Atmel employees who have access to Atmel's trade secrets, know-how and business value, as a means of misappropriation. The lawsuit concerns, among other things, personnel, procedural and operational technology involving Atmel's state-of-the-art semiconductor fabrication facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Atmel's employees are being recruited for Vitesse's new Colorado Springs fabrication facility. In accordance with well-accepted industry practices, all of Atmel's employees sign employment agreements in which they agree to maintain the confidentiality of Atmel's information and not to solicit, for a reasonable period of time, remaining Atmel employees for positions with Atmel's competitors. The complaint alleges that the three former Atmel employees named have violated their agreements by actively recruiting other key Atmel employees to set up and operate Vitesse's new facility, who will inevitably disclose and use Atmel's proprietary information and Atmel taught know-how in their new positions. Without this valuable information, according to the complaint, Vitesse would not be able to complete and operate its new fabrication facility without substantial expenditures of time and money. ''Atmel did not bring this action to prevent its employees from working for Vitesse. Atmel did bring this action to lawfully stop unfair competition by Vitesse that threatens Atmel's carefully safeguarded proprietary information, know-how and business value. Atmel also seeks to enforce its contractual relationships with its employees,'' states the Company's chief litigation and intellectual property counsel, Julie Mar-Spinola. Atmel is seeking, among other things, injunctive relief against further wrongful solicitation of current key employees. Headquartered in San Jose, California, with principal manufacturing facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado and in Rousset, France, Atmel designs, develops, manufactures, and markets on a worldwide basis Flash, EEPROMs, and EPROMs, as well as programmable logic, microcontrollers, and application-specific devices. SOURCE: Atmel Cor