Apple's Competitors File Anti-Compete Charges

Apple's Competitors File Anti-Compete Charges

Rivals of Apple have filed cases involving non-compete clauses to inhibit executive talents to jump ship and be swayed over to the electronic giant's pool of competitive workforce.


Two top-level executives from other companies who were hired by Apple got a beating from their ex-employers, charging them of violating non-compete agreements. IBM sued Mark Papermaster to stop him from taking a job as a  technology advisor to Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Motorola, on the other hand, filed charges against Michael Fenger four months after he got hired by Apple.  Fenger is currently working as Apple's VP of global iPhone sales.



IBM claims that Papermaster has a vast knowledge of the company's entire cloud of trade secrets as well as confidences. Papermaster left IBM on October 21 and got himself employed by Apple the following month. According to IBM, Papermaster's move was in contrary to its non-compete terms, prohibiting any employee to move to  competing companies for a year.



Meanwhile, Motorola's lawsuit against Fenger argued that the company has given him  "millions of dollars in cash, restricted stock units, and stock options" in exchange of his stay in the company of two years. Motorola also asserted that Fenger "cannot perform his duties for Apple without inevitably disclosing Motorola's trade secrets."