Following a lawsuit by Barco NV and Barco Fredrikstad AS against Norxe AS and 10 of its employees, Fredrikstad District Court acquitted Norxe and its employees from all essential allegations in a judgement dated June 17th, 2019.
The Court stated, amongst others, that:
It has been clarified and acknowledged by the plaintiffs that P1 does not build on Barco technology. P1 is developed within a normal time period from scratch but with assistance from major suppliers like Philips and Texas Instruments.”
P1 seems to have been successful and chosen by several customers. The court regards this as a normal and good competition in the market and for the best of customers. Norxe offers a product that customers see as better than Barco’s and that comes with a long warranty.
In a recent verdict from Borgarting Appeal Court dated February 11th, 2021 (not yet legally enforceable), the Appeal Court reaffirms that Norxe P1 is 100% Norxe technology in collaboration with strategic partners. The Appeal Court categorically acquitted Norxe and its employees of all claims made by Barco and found that it was in actual fact Barco who had acted in violation of good business practice towards Norxe, defaming their good name and reputation by making various serious and untrue allegations concerning the illegal use of intellectual property etc. in the market. The Appeal Court stated, inter alia, that:
It is the Appeal Court’s impression that Barco actively sought out potential customers of Norxe and gave information that was negative and untrue. […]. The information Barco gave is not compatible with the standards of good business practice.
Thus, the Appeal Court found that Barco is liable for any economic loss their behavior has inflicted upon Norxe. Though Barco’s legal liability has been established, the level of financial loss will be subject to negotiations or new legal proceedings.
Norxe CEO Kjell Einar Olsen commented that the more than three years long litigation process initiated by Barco, starting early May 2017 with an “Ex-Parte” (one-sided) surprise-seizure at Norxe’s premises, where all data files on the main server in addition to private PC’s and mobile phones were copied, finally has come to a conclusion by the Borgarting Appeal Court. “We will now focus 100% on developing, manufacturing and selling our unique projectors to select and demanding partners world-wide. We owe our partners a great appreciation for standing alongside and supporting us through these difficult times and the increased strength in relationships that this support has forged.”
Vice President Global Sales, Espen Olsen, commented that “Despite the very challenging campaign Barco instigated against us in the market, we have been able to successfully grow our sales since the P1 was introduced in November 2016, and more recently the P2 RGB LASER projector. There is no doubt that we make a major difference with our partners regarding our products, people and behavior. While we are clearly ahead of competition with the P1 and P2, we now look forward to introducing a new range of even higher performance native 4K projectors that will again raise the bar and strengthen our product portfolio.”
About Norxe
Norxe is designing, manufacturing and selling specialized projectors for demanding applications. Our products are 100% designed and manufactured in Fredrikstad, Norway, by skilled craftsmen that are pioneers in the projection industry. Our QTPC quality philosophy is never compromised. We have an international sales organization to ensure local support and service to our customers across the globe. Norxe is 100% owned by the employees, ensuring the very best dedication to product development, manufacturing and customer support and service. Our pride is in our people and in our products.”
