Rambler asks law enforcers to stop criminal case against Nginx

MOSCOW, Dec 17 (PRIME) -- The board of directors of Russian media holding Rambler has ordered the management board to ask the law enforcement entities to terminate a criminal case against web service Nginx, the holding said late on Monday in a statement after a meeting of the board of directors.

“Having considered all the circumstances, the board of directors unanimously decided…to order Rambler’s management to turn to the law enforcement entities with a request to cease the criminal case and in case of necessity to continue to protect the company’s interests legally,” the statement read.

The board of directors also ordered to terminate a contract with Lynwood, to which the holding ceded the reclamation rights in 2015, related to violation of the rights for Nginx. Lynwood should be also advised to revoke its lawsuit as well.

The Nginx office in Moscow was earlier searched in a criminal case opened on suspicion of violation of the author’s rights. The service was designed in early 2000s by Igor Sysoyev, media holding Rambler’s former employee. Sysoyev together with another Rambler employee, Maxim Konovalov, established Nginx in 2011. U.S. firm F5 Networks acquired the business in spring for U.S. $670 million.

The case was initiated by Lynwood, which thinks that Nginx is a product of its former employee and any use of this program without Rambler’s consent violates its exclusive rights.

The business and IT communities criticized solving the dispute as a criminal case, and this opinion was shared by German Gref, head of the country’s top lender, Sberbank, which owns 46.5% of Rambler.

Rambler’s board of directors also ordered the management to familiarize Nginx’s founders and representatives of F5 Networks with the materials proving possible violation of the rights and hold consultations to settle the argument.

“In the modern world, intellectual property rights disputes are omnipresent, and for a technological company, protection of its rights are natural, but such issues should be settled as a civil case,” said Lev Khasis, chairman of Rambler’s board of directors and first deputy chairperson of Sberbank.

Rambler’s board of directors also ordered a staff committee to consider cooperation between the management and the board in the situation with Nginx.

End