(Bloomberg) — Hytera Communications Corp., a Chinese technology company, was accused by U.S. prosecutors of stealing trade secrets for mobile radio technology developed by Motorola Solutions Inc.
Hytera recruited and hired Motorola employees to take proprietary information from internal databases from 2007 to 2020, according to a 21-count federal indictment unsealed Monday in Chicago. The names of others charged in the indictment remained sealed.
In 2020, Motorola won a $764.6 million civil court verdict against its Chinese rival after a jury concluded Hytera stole critical trade secrets for two-way radio technology used by school officials, utility workers and construction crews.
Hytera denied stealing technology and said it developed its products on its own. It has appealed the verdict and accused Motorola of abusing its superior market power to hobble competition.
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An arraignment date for the criminal case against Hytera hasn’t been set, the Department of Justice said in an emailed statement.
U.S.-based representatives of Hytera didn’t respond to emails and a voicemail seeking comment on the indictment.
Range of Secrets
The indictment accuses Hytera of stealing a broad range of secrets including source code, designs of operation architecture and security features. Hytera was a former distributor of Motorola radios until it began luring away former Motorola employees and developed a rival product.
Motorola said the charges “underscore the calculated and deliberate character of Hytera’s illegal activity directed at Motorola Solutions.”
The indictment “alleges that Hytera engaged in a decade-long criminal conspiracy to steal and use Motorola Solutions’ trade secrets and proprietary information in order to develop and sell digital mobile radios,” said Motorola Solutions General Counsel Mark Hacker.
The Chicago-based company said it will continue to pursue civil litigation in multiple jurisdictions. It has filed lawsuits against Hytera in the U.S., China, Germany and Australia. Hytera has sued Motorola as well.
The criminal case is U.S. v. Hytera Communications Corp., 20-cr-688; the lead civil case is Motorola Solutions Inc. v. Hytera Communications Corp., 17-cv-1973; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois (Chicago).
(Updates with comment from Motorola Solutions beginning in eighth paragraph.)
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