Chinese tech companies have been accused of many things in recent times, one of which is intellectual property theft. Recently, it was reported that some persons suspected to Chinese nationals stole software from Dutch chip manufacturer ASML. In no distant time, the news was carried by Dutch newspaper Financieele Dagblad. Some local politicians even suggested that it might be state-sponsored espionage. All that has changed as ASML CEO Peter Wennink has finally revealed who they discovered was responsible for the intellectual property theft.
In an interview on Dutch television, the CEO refuted the earlier rumour that China was responsible. Wennink instead reportedly disclosed that the heist was carried out by its biggest Korean customer. That happens to be Samsung even though the CEO left off short of mentioning the name of the company, even when prodded by the interviewer. Wennink also hinted that the company was able to reach that damning conclusion through the aid of an external independent investigator to unravel who was behind the theft. This rules the espionage as ordinary business espionage and not state espionage.
The theft was apparently executed by former Chinese employees of the chip giant who stole the software to set up their own company named Xtal based in the US. The company was aimed at taken on ASML and to provide Samsung with a cheaper alternative. Samsung allegedly holds a 30% share in the startup. The software in question is a vital tool for setting up chip machines for optimum production of electronic chips.
An official statement from Samsung sent via e-mail to LetsGoDigital read; “Samsung makes it a top priority to protect and respect the intellectual property rights of others. We are deeply disappointed at media reports that had widely assumed or even suggested of Samsung’s involvement in any wrongdoing against ASML, which are not true. While we cannot disclose details of our business deals, Samsung had made precautions so as to adhere to all laws and regulations with its development contract with Xtal, including a clause that specifically prohibits the illegal use of 3rd-party IPs. All products that have resulted from our partnership with Xtal do not interfere with ASML’s IPs. We would also like to clarify that, unlike media reports, our partnership with ASML has remained strong without discontinuation”.
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Samsung still remains one of ASML’s major clients and we don’t know how this damning allegation will affect their partnership.
(source)
