UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON,
D.C. 20549
FORM
8-K
CURRENT
REPORT PURSUANT
TO
SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF
THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of
report (Date of earliest event reported): August
10, 2009
ClearOne
Communications,
Inc.
(Exact
Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
Utah
(State or
Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)
|
001-33660
|
87-0398877
|
|
|
(Commission
File Number)
|
(I.R.S.
employer
identification
number)
|
|
5225 Wiley Post Way, Suite 500
Salt Lake City, Utah
|
84116
|
|
|
(Address
of principal executive offices)
|
(Zip
Code)
|
(801)
975-7200
(Registrant’s
Telephone Number, Including Area Code)
Not
applicable
(Former
Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)
Check the
appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously
satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following
provisions:
[ ] Written
communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR
30.425)
[ ] Soliciting
material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
40.14a-12)
[ ] Pre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14d-2(b))
[ ] Pre-commencement
communication pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.13e-4(c))
Item
8.01 Other Events.
On August
5, 2009, ClearOne Communications, Inc. (the “Company”) issued a press release
titled ClearOne Granted New Temporary
Restraining Order Against DialHD, Inc., Donald Bowers, and Others, in Federal
Trade Secret Misappropriation Case. The full text of the
Company’s press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated
by reference.
Item
9.01 Financial
Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
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Exhibit No.
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Title of Document
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Location
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99.1
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Press
Release dated August 5, 2009 entitled “ClearOne Granted New Temporary
Restraining Order Against DialHD, Inc., Donald Bowers, and Others, in
Federal Trade Secret Misappropriation Case.”
|
This
Filing
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has
duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto
duly authorized.
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CLEARONE
COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
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||
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Date: August
10, 2009
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By:
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/s/ Zeynep Hakimoglu
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Zeynep
Hakimoglu
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||
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Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer
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||
- 2 -
EXHIBIT
99.1
CLEARONE
GRANTED NEW TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AGAINST DIALHD, INC., DONALD BOWERS, AND
OTHERS, IN FEDERAL TRADE SECRET MISAPPROPRIATION CASE
Salt Lake City, UT – August 5, 2009 –
A temporary restraining order was issued by the federal court today, in
favor of ClearOne Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: CLRO), expanding the scope of an
earlier entered permanent injunction to apply to, among others, DialHD, Inc., a
Georgia corporation (“DialHD), Donald Bowers, a resident of Georgia, and David
Sullivan, a resident of Connecticut.
The
temporary restraining order was issued by the Utah federal court which presided
over the trial in this case (the “Intellectual Property Case”) before a jury in
October and November 2008. The case was originally initiated by ClearOne against
Biamp Systems Corporation (“Biamp”) and a group of defendants collectively
termed as the “WideBand Defendants,” consisting of WideBand Solutions, Inc.
(“WideBand”), Versatile DSP, Inc and three of WideBand’s principals – Dr. Jun
Yang, who was a former ClearOne employee, Andrew Chiang, who was previously
affiliated with an entity that sold certain assets to ClearOne, and Lonny
Bowers. On November 5, 2008, the jury returned a verdict in the
Intellectual Property Case in favor of ClearOne. Subsequently, in April
2009, the Court entered a final judgment against the defendants for
approximately $9.7 million. The court has also previously issued
injunction orders prohibiting WideBand Solutions, Inc., its principals, and
others acting in concert with WideBand, from (among other things) the use,
marketing or sale of ClearOne’s trade secrets and WideBand’s infringing products
found to use these trade secrets.
In
seeking the temporary restraining order, ClearOne alleged that the WideBand
Defendants were working in concert with Lonny Bowers’ father, Donald Bowers, to
circumvent the Court’s permanent injunction by establishing a new company named
DialHD, and continue to sell products containing ClearOne’s trade secrets.
In the temporary restraining order, the Court ruled that “ClearOne has shown a
substantial likelihood of success on the merits of its temporary restraining
order request with regard to the sale and/or marketing of the DialHD products
sometimes identified as the “AEC4” and the “Mix-4” or “Automixer,” including not
only the physical products but also all firmware, software, accessories,
installation materials, and support materials (the “DialHD Infringing
Products”).” The Court went on to state that “ClearOne has demonstrated a
substantial likelihood of success on the merits of its claim that the DialHD
Infringing Products illegally utilize the Honeybee Code in the same or similar
fashion to those “Infringing Products” identified in the Court’s Order Granting
Permanent Injunction.” Finally, the Court ruled that “ClearOne has already
established that there was a “cognizable danger” that future violations would
occur absent an injunction, and it now appears that such violations have
occurred, which necessitate further injunctive relief necessary to protect the
trade secret and related interests established at trial.”
The Court
also specifically prohibited “any further marketing, selling, manufacturing,
development, modification, duplication, or transport or delivery of any of the
technology contained in the DialHD Infringing Products, and a restriction upon
any further marketing, selling, delivery, support, and/or use of the DialHD
Infringing Products, including to service any past or existing customers.”
The Court further ordered the WideBand Defendants, along with DialHD, Donald
Bowers, and David Sullivan, not to transfer, hide or dispose of any assets, and
not to transfer any money beyond the jurisdiction of the Court, to preserve
evidence, and to communicate the temporary restraining order to their suppliers
and distributors.
The Court
has under consideration additional requests for relief from ClearOne, including
ClearOne’s request for an award of attorney fees and costs from DialHD, Donald
Bowers, and David Sullivan.
At trial
and throughout the Intellectual Property Case, ClearOne was represented by the
Utah law firm of Magleby & Greenwood, P.C.
About
ClearOne
ClearOne is a communications solutions
company that develops and sells audio conferencing systems and other related
products for audio, video, and web conferencing applications. The
reliability, flexibility, and performance of ClearOne’s comprehensive solutions
create a natural communications environment, which saves organizations time and
money by enabling more effective and efficient communication. For more
information, visit ClearOne’s website at www.clearone.com.