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Technology Stocks : WDC/Sandisk Corporation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: David W. Tucker who wrote (5824)	5/26/1999 9:49:00 PM
From: Sam	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 60323

I agree--Lexar appears desperate here. I haven't seen any ads by SNDK claiming anything about Lexar, but presuming the ads are true enough, Lexar is grasping at straws. One thing that we know Sandisk has is good lawyers who know how to defend their patents. Sandisk is probably asking for their standard royalty--which is reportedly more than what most companies get, due to the nature of their patents--and Lexar is balking. They are probably also asking for some substantial payments for past infringement. I don't know what Lexar's financial situation is, but I'm guessing if SNDK prevails, Lexar foresees trouble ahead with their business model, and that is why they are now publicly wriggling so shamelessly..

To: David W. Tucker who wrote (5824)	5/26/1999 10:33:00 PM
From: Ausdauer	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 60323

Tuck and Thread, When I read the Lexar release this afternoon I got a really uncomfortable, hollow feeling in my stomach, like the lawsuit was some type of personal affront against me, a shareholder. Maybe other SanDisk longs had this reaction. It is a peculiar type of feeling. I can't imagine how a SanDisk officer or employee might feel. One thing that I have noticed in the Lexar press releases is a shift in the tenor of their accusations. First it was a patent dispute. Then SanDisk's claims were baseless or unfounded. Then there was a motion for dismissal due to incomplete investigation (reverse engineering) on the part of SanDisk engineers. Then there was a lenghty quiet period. Then the claims construction. Then an initial judgement and assignment of an ombudsman. Then an attempt to pawn off a built-in USB driver to settle the dispute. Now, all of a sudden, SanDisk is a libelous, rough-housing, anti-competitive, 800-pound Gorilla. The only thing they left out of the claim was "horse thief" and "philanderer". My point (and I do have one) is that it just seems like Lexar has exhausted all of its legal maneuvers and now they are resorting to a totally different legal tactic. I have already commented today about open standards for CF and MMC. There are any number of CF manufacturers out there who aren't making such claims against SanDisk. And let's face it, maybe Lexar isn't competitive because they purchase flash memory on the open market and don't have contribute any additional, useful patents on CF assembly. Or maybe they should have invested $51 million in a wafer fabrication plant. Perhaps they should spend some money on real R and D and not get a free lunch from Dr. Harari and company. I mean, they want SanDisk to cough up all their intellectual property for free??? That just isn't reasonable and worse, it just ain't American. The next point I wish to make is the fact that SanDisk had a market cap of well under $500 million dollars most of last year. It is a small cap company at best, not an industry heavyweight bearing down an any competitor that treads on its turf. Give me a break. Finally, you could hardly fault SanDisk for pursuing a company that was founded by a previous employee. My understanding from posts a while back on this thread is that there is a history between these companies and a great deal of bad blood. It is only natural (for SanDisk) to pursue perceived breaches of confidence or trust such as arose in this situation. In fact, it is my opinion that a lawsuit brought on by a company run by a prior SanDisk employee greatly undermines the credibility of the defense in the first place. It takes a lot of chutzpah to file for a summary dismissal or to make claims such as we have witnessed today. I am hoping for a denial of the suit mentioned today. I hope that it is baseless and any consequences for such frivolity will be enforced to the highest degree. If Lexar wishes to pursue SanDisk in court based on the original lawsuit I hope they have deep pockets and are prepared to pay the treble damages, if applicable. I firmly believe Lexar had a stronger hand one year ago when it decided to push away from the bargaining table. SSTI has set a precedent by acknowledging SanDisk's contributions to fundamental flash technology. I think Lexar made a grave mistake at that point, perhaps a fatal one. Now what does Lexar bring to the table other than a finger pointing straight into Dr. Harari's face. It is simply maddening. I hope that Lexar is playing its last hand. It is time to face the music. ALSO, DON'T FORGET TO TELL THE LEAD ATTORNEY TO PICK UP SOME MORE HUGGIES ON THE WAY HOME FROM THE OFFICE TONIGHT. MR. REIMER TAKES EXTRA LARGE. Ausdauer