While it doesn’t mention Google Wallet by name, PayPal’s lawsuit coincides with the day that Google’s NFC service was announced. Alleging that trade secrets were stolen and disclosed, PayPal’s going after Google in a big way.
PayPal is not only suing Google, but “two former colleagues who now work there, Osama Bedier and Stephanie Tilenius,” Amanda Pires, the senior director of PayPal global communications, wrote on the PayPal blog. According to the lawsuit filed by PayPal and parent-company eBay, vice president of platform, mobile and new ventures Bedier left PayPal in January to take up a “similar role at Google.” Tilenius meanwhile left the company in 2009 as the senior vice president of North America and global products, taking up the role of president of electronic commerce at Google.
Urging readers to read the lawsuit themselves “see why we believe the law has been violated, and why we needed to take this action to protect PayPal’s trade secrets,” the lawsuit specifies that “over the past year, PayPal has been developing capabilities to provide large retailers with next generation “mobile payment” point of sale technology and services. Recently, Google has also been exploring the market for next generation mobile payment point of sale technology and service,” and that Bedier has helped them along by “misappropriated PayPal trade secrets by disclosing them within Google and to 9 major retailers.” Tilenius’ crime, alleges PayPal, was to recruit Bedier from their former employer.[PayPal lawsuit via PayPal]
Scott Richmond
Saturday, May 28, 2011 at 8:59 AMPiss off paypal. You don’t get to tell people what jobs they can perform anywhere else. Completely behind Google on this – Its about time someone with real intelligence tackled the greedy and consumer unfriendly waters of finance.
Jon
Saturday, May 28, 2011 at 2:09 PMReading between the lines I’m picking up that Paypal is pissed because once Google is in direct competition Paypal will no longer be able to charge obscene fees for their payment services.
Paypal/eBay lost my support the day it became mandatory to provide a Paypal payment option on all eBay listings, which of course netted eBay obscene amounts of money in the form of Paypal payment fees that were in addition to fees for the eBay listing itself. Money grubbing at it’s finest.