Compaq, Seagate Sued for Alleged Patent Infringement

Convolve Inc., a privately held company based in New York, said it and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology filed suit against Compaq Computer Corp. and Seagate Technology Inc., charging patent infringement of computer disk drive technology. Convolve is seeking at least $800 million in damages and a permanent injunction barring Compaq and Seagate from manufacturing or selling disk drives or computers incorporating Seagate’s “Sound Barrier Technology.” The action alleges that computer maker Compaq and its disk drive supplier Seagate misappropriated Convolve’s technology, called “Quick and Quiet,” which allows the user of the disk drive to select between fast or quiet computer performance. MIT is obligated through a licensing agreement with Convolve to join the lawsuit. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks “to prevent Compaq and Seagate from stealing Convolve’s proprietary computer disk drive technology.” Neither Compaq nor Seagate was immediately available for comment.