LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., Oct. 1, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DealerTrack Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:TRAK), a leading provider of on-demand software and data solutions for the U.S. automotive retail industry, today announced an update regarding its patent infringement litigation against RouteOne LLC and Finance Express LLC, including the Markman hearing claim interpretation rulings and the setting of a new trial date.
Yesterday, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Judge Andrew Guilford issued several rulings favorable to DealerTrack. In its rulings, the court resolved in DealerTrack's favor disputed issues of claim interpretation and patent validity for DealerTrack's recently issued patent. The court rejected RouteOne's argument that the claims were indefinite and did not accept RouteOne's claim interpretations of claims 1, 3 and 4 of the patent. The court denied RouteOne's motion for summary judgment of noninfringement.
This follows Judge Guilford's ruling in March on this patent that denied RouteOne's motion for partial summary judgment that the patent was invalid and also favorable rulings in July with regard to this patent on inventorship and validity. As a result, the court's rulings allow DealerTrack to pursue patent infringement claims, damages and injunctions against RouteOne and Finance Express at trial.
The jury trial, which was scheduled for October 28, 2008, has now been rescheduled for February 24, 2009. The repeated delays have been caused by RouteOne's motions and Finance Express' recent withdrawal of counsel, due to non-payment of legal fees.
In other rulings, the court found that claims of two other issued patents in the lawsuit were either not infringed or invalid. In order to win on patent infringement DealerTrack has to win on only one claim of one patent.
"We are pleased that the court has rejected all of RouteOne's and Finance Express' challenges to the validity and enforceability of our patent and we feel strongly that a jury trial will confirm the validity and infringement of this patent," said Mark O'Neil, chairman and chief executive officer of DealerTrack. O'Neil added that "we are firmly committed to protecting our intellectual property rights, including enjoining RouteOne's and Finance Express' infringing activities." O'Neil concluded, "We are confident in the merits of our case and look forward to the jury trial in February."
About DealerTrack (www.dealertrack.com)
DealerTrack Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:TRAK) is a leading provider of on-demand software and data solutions for the U.S. automotive retail industry. Our solutions enable dealers to receive consumer leads, submit credit applications, compare financing and leasing options, sell insurance, vehicle accessories and other aftermarket products, document compliance, and execute financing contracts electronically. In addition, the DealerTrack Arkona DMS (dealer management system) is used by dealerships nationwide. Over 22,000 dealers, 700 financing sources, and many other service and information providers are active in the DealerTrack network. For more information, visit www.dealertrack.com.
Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
Statements in this press release regarding DealerTrack's ability to prevail on the merits and all other statements in this release other than the recitation of historical facts are forward-looking statements (as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements of DealerTrack Holdings, Inc. to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.
Factors that might cause such a difference include: the outcome of future rulings by the Court, the timing of the litigation, and other risks listed in our reports filed with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007. These filings can be found at www.dealertrack.com and the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Forward-looking statements included herein speak only as of the date hereof and we disclaim any obligation to revise or update such statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events or circumstances.
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