See also: W3C staff comments on DRP submission
The following was the enclosure with the message which was received on 1997 August 27
( BW)(NOVADIGM)(NVDM) NOVADIGM Sues Marimba Business Editors & Hi-Tech Writers MAHWAH, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--August 27, 1997-- Patent Infringement Lawsuit May Impact W3C Protocol Submission Novadigm, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVDM) today said it has warned the World-Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that elements of the proposed Distribution and Replication Protocol (DRP) may infringe its intellectual property rights. The company asked that the consortium defer consideration of the proposal, pending resolution of a patent infringement lawsuit Novadigm filed against Marimba Inc. in March 1997. The lawsuit alleges that Marimba has infringed upon Novadigm's existing "fractional differencing" patent, issued in December 1996. Based upon a review of documentation made public by Marimba and the W3C, Novadigm believes DRP may use techniques similar to its patented methods, including DRP's use of differential indexing. Neither company has previously commented publicly on the lawsuit. Novadigm said it will also notify the other companies involved in the DRP proposal of its claims against Marimba. Those companies are: Netscape Communications Corp. (NASDAQ: NSCP), Novell Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVL), Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW), and @Home Network (NASDAQ: ATHM). "Standards are clearly a positive force in the industry, but the fact remains that this technology is not Marimba's to give away," stated Albion Fitzgerald, chairman and chief executive officer of Novadigm. "We have invested over six years and thousands of hours in perfecting the technologies needed to solve software and information distribution problems. This work has resulted in production implementations on a scale unmatched by any other vendor." "Marimba is a start-up which has garnered much attention, but apparently does not respect our property rights. We think that Marimba's sudden magnanimous decision to abandon their own patent process and donate the technology to open standards should be seen in the light of our already granted patent and the ongoing litigation as an exploitative action without regard to the obvious intellectual property issues involved. We own this technology and we're going to vigorously defend it, even as Marimba works aggressively to use and claim credit for it." Fitzgerald said Novadigm was surprised by Marimba's DRP proposal, announced yesterday, and is unable to say whether the partner companies knew of the infringement claim. "We've remained silent about the litigation in order to facilitate a resolution by the legal and patent processes we are all supposed to adhere to, but dragging the W3C and the Internet community unknowingly into the middle of the dispute is a particularly inappropriate tactic. We think Marimba either didn't inform the other companies and the W3C of the lawsuit or told them only one side of it," Fitzgerald said. "We are hoping the WC3 and Marimba's partners will take an equitable and arms-length approach as the matter proceeds through the courts." Novadigm's counsel advised that the case is in discovery stages and that Novadigm is investigating the nature and scope of Marimba's alleged infringement. About The Patent Novadigm's Patent (Number 5,581,764) "Distributed Computer Network Including Hierarchical Resource Information Structure and Related Method of Distributing Resources" describes the processes needed to generate from a common reference model a unique content configuration for each target end user, and to "difference" the "desired state" configuration with the actual-state of the target, yielding highly granular and very specific updates to distributed content automatically. The patent covers two central areas: · Desired state configuration - processes which incorporate essential elements of both "push" and "pull" distribution models. By generating from a common reference model a unique user configuration which describes the specific software or content a target user should have, producers can automatically 'push' content to specific servers, desktops, or users; or groups of users. In addition, the 'pull' process provides a means for users to control when the flow of information takes place, what information is delivered, and where it is stored. · Fractional Differencing - processes for comparing and contrasting the desired state configuration identifying what components a target should have with the resources it actually has, resulting in a concise and highly detailed difference configuration describing what components are needed - or should be removed - to ensure the targeted user is properly configured with a minimum of network traffic. The technologies protected by the patent are incorporated into Novadigm's Enterprise Desktop Manager(tm) software management solution. That product is used by some of the most demanding and complex information technology organizations world-wide. They are also the basis for new Novadigm products which will address requirements for efficient desktop management in the Internet environment. About Novadigm Novadigm is a leading provider of distributed software management solutions that reduce the cost and complexity of managing client/server, packaged and Internet software. The company's products use a patented 'desired-state' automation platform to distribute software across thousands of desktops and servers without manual intervention. The company licenses its products to Fortune 5000 IT organizations, software vendors, and service providers around the World. Novadigm's common stock trades on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange under the symbol "NVDM". More information on Novadigm, Inc. can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.novadigm.com/ or by calling 800-626-6682. # # # Note To Editors -- Novadigm, EDM, and Enterprise Desktop Manager are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Novadigm, Inc. All other product, trademark, company, or service names mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. Novadigm, Inc. is not affiliated with Novadyne Computer Systems, Inc. of Reston, VA. CONTACT: Novadigm, Inc. Dale Gardner, 703/771-6075 daleg@novadigm.com URL: http://www.novadigm.com