Starwood Hotels Settles Lawsuit against Hilton Worldwide
Starwood Hotels Settles Lawsuit against Hilton Worldwide
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. said it has settled its lawsuit alleging misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential and proprietary information against Hilton Worldwide. In addition, the company said Hilton will be subject to an injunction supervised by U.S. Federal District Court-appointed monitors to ensure that such conduct does not happen again. Other terms of the settlement remain confidential, according to Starwood.
For its part, Hilton Worldwide said it had consented to an injunction that includes certain business restrictions for a period of two years. Additional terms of the settlement are confidential, it said. “Hilton Worldwide regrets the circumstances surrounding the dispute with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and is pleased to bring an end to this prolonged litigation,” said Christopher Nassetta, president and chief executive officer of Hilton Worldwide. “Hilton Worldwide is committed to fair, ethical and robust competition in the marketplace, and we will continue to focus on what we do best – providing exceptional services for all of our guests around the world.”
The settlement reportedly prohibits Hilton from creating any hotel brand that would compete “in the lifestyle hotel or branded boutique space” over the next two years. The Justice Department had previously announced it was conducting a criminal probe, and the document filed in court on Wednesday said a grand jury is still investigating the situation.
The court case began after Hilton told Starwood in February 2009 that it had found confidential Starwood information at Hilton and in the homes of employees who had recently joined Hilton from Starwood. Hilton turned over thousands of Starwood documents and computer files to Starwood. Hilton had introduced its Denizen brand in March 2009, and Starwood alleged the concept was developed using Starwood's internal documents obtained by the former employees who had moved to Hilton.
