SSL Sues Orbital ATK Over Unauthorized Access of Data on NASA Server
SSL sues rival Orbital ATK over theft of trade secrets: lawsuit Reuters
“At least four confidential SSL documents were viewed and distributed by an Orbital ATK employee working at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, where the data is stored as part of an ongoing SSL partnership with the U.S. space agency, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.”
“The documents contain information about SSL’s technology for robotic satellite assembly, repair and servicing; research and development efforts; financing and business plans; procurement and performance strategies; customer development; and subcontractor and vendor relationships, the suit said.”
Marc’s note: Things are heating up in the Orbital ATK / SSL (MDA) commercial battle for satellite servicing. Orbital fired the employee in question but the damage is done. NASA is conducting an investigation. More to follow.
Earlier:
– Satellite Servicing Heats up with Orbital ATK Suing DARPA
The filing of the suits suggests that there must be some substantial size contracts available to be won.
Not necessarily, if you mean big government contracts. On orbit servicing is beginning to look like a very profitable, commercial market. Both companies seem interested is developing their capabilities to provide these services, and seem unwilling to give away a competitive advantage. This could be motivated by expectations of lots of small, private contracts, not a few big, government contracts.
Orbital and MacDonald Detwiler are now, directly or indirectly, involved in at least two suits related to satellite servicing. It’s unfortunate; and, potentially, damaging for the industry, if this spirals out of control.
The perfect (bad) example is what happened with the Wrights, who helped create modern aeronautics science practices and indirectly an industry. Once they and Curtis entered the courts – and fought for years- over patents/technology rights, etc., all aeronautics progress practically came to a halt in the US. And it certainly ended the innovation stage of the Wright Brothers as they put all their energies, and money, into protecting their bailiwick. Nothing like that happened in Europe, which leapfrogged the US in aeronautics technology.
In fact, the earliest success of the new NACA after it was created in 1915, as Charles Miller pointed out several years ago in The Space Review, was not in technology per se; in fact, NACA’s first Center, Langley, wouldn’t be up and running till years later. Their first success was brokering an agreement between the parties on things like cross-licensing so that America could get moving again in aeronautics.
Let’s hope something similar does not happen here with satellite servicing- a needed industry- which means, multiple competitors- we need to see developed; particularly since the new Administration seems intent on slashing funds that would support such efforts.
As an outside observer, I’m most uncomfortable, so far, with what seems to be a very aggressive stance on Orbital’s part. Suing DARPA on its effort, claiming it is duplicative to theirs, is, in my personal view, without merit. And to have this most recent case where Orbital employee(s) apparently really did improperly access another company’s proprietary data, firing one of their own, just doesn’t give a positive fuzzy that Orbital is putting its focus where it should be: competing in this new industry on the basis of cost, and type of service and schedule flexibility, etc.