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Hotel chain Hilton Worldwide has agreed to a series of business restrictions in an out of court settlement with Starwood Hotels in a dispute over trade secrets.
The terms of the restrictions – which will remain in place – are to be kept confidential.
“Hilton Worldwide regrets the circumstances surrounding the dispute with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and is pleased to bring an end to this prolonged litigation,” Hilton chief executive Christopher Nassetta said in a statement.
According to “Breaking Travel News” (BTN), the suit relates to the defection of two senior executives from Starwood to Hilton. In April 2009 Ross Klein and Amar Lalvani moved to Hilton, taking hundreds of thousands of electronic documents with them. The two subsequently developed a new Hilton hotel line called Denizen, using confidential information from Starwood, the suit said.
Terms of Settlement
Under the terms of the settlement an independent monitor is to be appointed to ensure that Hilton does not use Starwood information set out under the agreement.
It also forbids Hilton from buying or franchising any Starwood Lifestyle Brand hotel that Starwood operates.
Furthermore, Hilton is also barred from hiring any Starwood employee for its Hilton Luxury & Lifestyle Brands Group.
That group includes Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Collection, and Conrad Hotels & Resorts, as well as Denizen.
Additionally, it forbids Hilton from launching a brand similar to Denizen.
In June Hilton – which is owned by Blackstone Group – lost its bid to dismiss the case and have all the Starwood claims settled through arbitration.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
