AirTight Networks Refutes Claims of Patent Interference

Mountain View, CA - February 27, 2006 - AirTight® Networks, the leading provider of wireless perimeter security solutions, today refuted claims by one of its competitors that US Patent No. 7,002,943, granted on Tuesday 21 February 2006 is unenforceable. This patent granted by the US PTO (Patent and Trademarks Office) covers key technologies that are core elements of wireless intrusion detection and prevention.
 
In AirTight Networks’ patent, it cited the relevant previous patent applications of this competitor, to ensure that the US PTO was aware of them. Of the four earlier patent applications filed by this competitor, two were rejected in their entirety, and two are still in process. These applications of this competitor do not describe, anticipate or allude to the novel ideas which AirTight has invented in the space of wireless intrusion detection and prevention. The fact that the AirTight patent was granted in less than half the time of these competitive applications speaks for itself.
 
AirTight Networks’ SpectraGuard® Enterprise has established its industry leadership position by delivering the key elements of an effective wireless intrusion prevention system (WIPS):
 

•  detecting and correctly classifying wireless threats – to catch all threats, while minimizing false alarms
•  preventing (multiple, simultaneous) wireless threats – while continuing to scan for new ones
•  accurately locating the wireless threats on a floor map – so they can be removed.

 
This patent addresses technologies implementing these functionalities, which are fundamental to wireless intrusion prevention.
 
“As I stated last week, this seminal patent validates AirTight’s leadership position as the first company to deliver and now patent a truly effective WIPS solution,” said David King, Chairman and CEO of AirTight Networks. “The claims being made by our competitor are false and misleading, and illustrate their lack of sophistication of how to manage the US Patent process. Their patent interference claim has been attached to a patent application which has already been rejected by the US PTO. The expedited patent examination process which AirTight Networks employed is commonplace and well understood by intellectual property professionals. And, once a patent is granted, which ours has been, there is no difference in the law based on what patent approval process was used. Our competitor’s wild accusations are a direct slap-in-the-face to the quality of the US PTO’s examination process and the professional conduct of the examiner. We view these statements as totally unfounded and irresponsible in the extreme. We intend to aggressively protect our intellectual property and build on our technology and product leadership.”
 
These patented capabilities are part of AirTight’s products - the SpectraGuard® Enterprise, SpectraGuard Sentry, SpectraGuard Planner, and SpectraGuard SAFE (Security Agent For Endpoints) products. As shown in the recently released Tolly Group report, AirTight’s SpectraGuard Enterprise outperforms its competitors in wireless intrusion prevention functionality.
 
“Counter to the claims of one of our competitors, AirTight Networks has a robust portfolio of fifteen patent applications, only we’re managing the process – and the disclosures around these filings - much more carefully,” said Pravin Bhagwat, CTO of AirTight Networks. “The two patents filed by this competitor that could be approved within the next few months are very narrow in substance, pertaining to specific wireless prevention techniques that neither AirTight Networks nor, to our knowledge, any of our competitors employ. Hence our view is that these two patents are essentially worthless. AirTight’s recently granted patent is much broader and more comprehensive.”

About AirTight Networks
AirTight Networks is the global leader in wireless security and compliance solutions. AirTight's patented technology protects enterprises from the growing problem of Wi-Fi security threats, while allowing organizations to better manage their WLAN environment and comply with emerging wireless compliance standards (i.e. PCI). The Company's award-winning SpectraGuard wireless intrusion prevention solution (WIPS) family provides enterprise security and compliance professionals with unparalleled capabilities to accurately detect, classify, block and locate all Wi-Fi security threats, while helping network operations staff to quickly monitor and troubleshoot WLAN performance issues. AirTight's pioneering Cloud Services family of cloud-hosted subscription services delivers the world's first and only "No Capex" multitenant WIPS, PCI wireless compliance and controller-less WLAN access solutions all in a single device.

AirTight's award-winning solutions are used by customers globally in the government, financial, retail, hospitality, telecom, technology, manufacturing, transportation, healthcare and education sectors AirTight owns the seminal patents for wireless intrusion prevention technology with 23 U.S. and international patents granted to date (UK, Australia Japan) and more than 20 additional patents pending. AirTight Networks is a privately held company based in Mountain View, CA.

Media Contacts:
Della Lowe
AirTight Networks
Tel: +1 (650) 934 8191
della.lowe@airtightnetworks.com