army
28 November 2013Copyright

US army settles copyright case for $50 million

The US government has agreed to pay a Texan company $50 million for the army’s unauthorised use of copyrighted software.

Apptricity had sued the Department of Justice in 2012, seeking $224.5 million after the army over-deployed software it had been licensing from the company.

The army has been using the product to manage the transportation of goods, troops and equipment, since 2004. Apptricity’s software helps to track movements in real time, rather than by map points, across multiple time zones.

The software was used in wars across the Middle East, including Iraq and Afghanistan, and when the army provided help in response to emergencies, such as following the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

But Apptricity claimed the army used the software in about 100 servers and on 9,000 devices that had not been licensed. This prompted complaints, letters and daily meetings with top army officials in 2011, according to Dallas News, which spoke to Apptricity before the settlement was publicly announced on November 25.

The settlement comes two and a half years after the company filed suit in the US Court of Federal Claims, which deals with monetary claims against the US government. Alternative dispute resolution proceedings were used to end the legal action.

Apptricity said the $50 million figure represents a fraction of the software’s negotiated contract value.

Retired Major Tim McHale, an Apptricity senior advisor, said that “now that this process is behind us, it is envisioned the Apptricity and Army relationship will continue to grow exponentially”, pointing out that the parties will continue to work together.

Apptricity’s chief financial officer and lead on the government negotiations, Randy Lieberman, added: “Our principal priority never shifted: ensuring that our intellectual property drives global efficiencies in commercial, educational and federal enterprises.”

Under US law, copyright owners can sue the government as long as the claims are filed within three years of the alleged infringement. Minimum statutory damages are $750 per infringement, which means neither wilful nor innocent infringement is an issue when determining damages for the government.

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