Google sued for US$1 billion

LimitNone says that Google initially distributed its gMove tool for migrating users of Microsoft’s Outlook email system to Gmail. However it claims Google then introduced its own tool, Google Email Uploader, which is virtually identical to gMove.

“LimitNone alleges that Google's software program is essentially identical to LimitNone's product and that Google could not have developed its competing product without using the information it learned from having access to and studying LimitNone's confidential and proprietary program,” said the start-up’s attorney David A. Rammelt.

“The complaint alleges that Google's own executives predicted that the migration tool would have "50 million users," which in the end proved to great a temptation for Google.”

The papers state that in a telephone conversation Google executives told LimitNone that a market of that size would be worth around US$950 million in revenues and that as such it was too much money for Google to pass up on.

LimitNone, which has five employees, was forced out of the market it claims and has now reconfigured itself to design and develop applications for the iPhone.