Infosys, a leading Indian IT services company, has filed a counterclaim against its competitor, Cognizant, in a Texas federal court. The lawsuit accuses Cognizant of employing anti-competitive tactics and aggressively recruiting key Infosys executives.
The core of Infosys’s complaint centers around allegations of contractual clauses that restrict clients from engaging with competing IT service providers. These clauses, Infosys argues, stifle competition within the industry and limit client choice. Further, Infosys contends that Cognizant refuses to provide training on its software to clients who might consider working with competitors, reinforcing the restrictive nature of its contracts.
Adding fuel to the fire, Infosys claims Cognizant engaged in a deliberate campaign to poach senior executives, specifically citing the appointment of S Ravi Kumar as Cognizant’s CEO in 2023. This strategic hiring, according to Infosys, hampered the development and launch of Infosys Helix, a software product intended to compete directly with Cognizant’s offerings. The delay caused by the loss of key personnel, Infosys asserts, significantly impacted its ability to compete effectively in the market.
Cognizant has responded to the allegations, stating its commitment to fair competition while emphasizing the importance of protecting its intellectual property. The company maintains that Infosys has improperly utilized Cognizant’s IP for its own competitive advantage. Cognizant has vowed to take decisive action to address the claims made against it.
This counterclaim follows a lawsuit filed by TriZetto, a Cognizant subsidiary, in August 2024. TriZetto accused Infosys of misappropriating trade secrets related to its healthcare insurance software, Facets and QNXT. These software products are widely used by healthcare insurance companies for automating administrative tasks. TriZetto alleges that Infosys leveraged its software to develop “Test Cases for Facets,” effectively repackaging TriZetto’s proprietary data into an Infosys product.
Infosys is seeking treble damages, along with legal fees and associated costs incurred in the litigation. The specific amount of damages being sought has not been publicly disclosed. The case, Cognizant TriZetto Software Group Inc v. Infosys Ltd, is being heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, No. 3:24-cv-02158-X. The outcome of this legal battle could have significant implications for the competitive landscape of the IT services industry.
