Austin Surveillance Camera Maker Says "Hey, You Ripped Us Off When We Weren't Looking"

The AustinBusinessJournal is reporting that Austin surveillance camera maker Advanced EDR Systems LLC has charged a former design partner with stealing ideas when it launched a competing company, Idrive Inc.

Along with its partner Envision Engineering, the local company launched in 2007 sued Idrive Inc., Solutions Group Inc., Sean O’Neil, Stephan Dragomir, Randy Aldridge and Colin Cairns in the case.

“We believe some of the key people behind the Idrive (camera) learned this information through their confidential relationship with (Advanced EDR Systems) and are now using it to compete against us,” Advanced CEO Daniel D’Agostino said.

“The lawsuit alleges that the Defendants learned AEDRS’ trade secrets and proprietary information in confidence when hired to help design and develop the envisionCAM (www.envisioncam.com) to AEDRS’ specifications,” said D’Agostino.

“We believe some of the key people behind the Idrive learned this information through their confidential relationship with AEDRS and are now using it to compete against us.” Several years ago, AEDRS hired Design Solutions Inc. (DSI) to design and develop the envisionCAM. Sean O’Neil was the CEO of DSI. “He signed a nondisclosure agreement on behalf of DSI and signed a contract stating that ‘all IP shall remain vested in AEDRS,’” said D’Agostino.

AEDRS and DSI ultimately had a dispute over an alleged failure to deliver a working product. AEDRS filed a lawsuit against DSI and O’Neil for breaches of contract, fraud, misappropriation of funds, and negligent misrepresentation. That lawsuit was eventually settled.

AEDRS now believes that some of the key people involved in the envisionCAM’s design and development that worked for DSI have created a new company (Idrive Inc.). Idrive now makes a competing product that is “very, very similar to the envisionCAM,” according to D’Agostino. The defendants appear to be “seeking to avoid judicial authority and civil liability by playing a ‘shell’ game with their business entities and practices,” according to the lawsuit. “I am confident that the facts of the case will speak for themselves and a jury will see the facts for what they are,” said D’Agostino.