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EasyJet reservation system on trial


A copyright dispute between easyJet and Navitaire, the software developer of the airline's old reservation system, is to go to trial, according to a report in the Financial Times. The dispute relates to easyJet's new system, which Navitaire claims is infringing its rights.

BulletProof Technologies was appointed to design a new travel reservation system for easyJet. According to the Californian software developer, the system previously used by easyJet was faulty.

That original system, OpenRes, was designed by Navitaire of Minnesota, a wholly-owned Accenture subsidiary. Navitaire provided computer reservation software to a number of other low-cost airlines. In May last year, Navitaire sued easyJet and later BulletProof in the English courts, arguing that the new system, called eRes, infringed Navitaire's copyright.

According to InfoWorld the complaint alleges that eRes accepted some of the same commands as OpenRes, used similar database fields and used the same "business logic".

According to the Financial Times, Mr Justice Pumfrey told the English High Court last week that, while it was not disputed that eRes was written in a different code to OpenRes, Navitaire was arguing that its rival had studied its system and produced a system to work in the same way. Pumfrey noted that parallels had been drawn between the "functional structure" of a computer system and copying the plot of a book.

A parallel case is being made in the US where BulletProof, which has an agreement with easyJet that it can use the reservation software elsewhere, wishes to market the product. To ensure that Navitaire cannot disrupt its business in the future, BulletProof has asked a Federal Court for a definitive ruling that eRes does not violate Navitaires' US rights, and that BulletProof has the right to sell, distribute and market eRes.

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