Two weeks after filing a trade secret theft lawsuit against CoStar Group, Move now wants CoStar to turn over documents and electronic equipment owned by Move used by former Realtor.com news and insights editor James Kaminsky.
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Two weeks after filing a trade secret theft lawsuit against rival CoStar Group, Realtor.com parent company Move, Inc. asked a California judge to block CoStar Group from accessing documents at the heart of the lawsuit.
Attorneys for Move filed a preliminary injunction with U.S. District Judge Steve Kim in California on Monday, asking the court to block CoStar Group and former Realtor.com News & Insights Editor James Kaminsky from accessing documents in Move’s possession outlining core information about real estate agents. and I compiled budget, audience and revenue data, as well as employment summaries for several Move employees.
Move said Kaminski accessed the files at least 37 times since becoming Homes.com editor in January. Move was not aware of Kaminski’s alleged conduct until June 3, when a Move employee received an alert that Kaminski’s Gmail account had core files opened for the Realtor.com News and Insights team. Move then blocked Kaminski’s Gmail address.
In addition to the preliminary injunction, Move’s attorneys want CoStar Group to provide a list of electronic devices (eg, desktop computers, laptops, cell phones) that Kaminsky has used since joining Homes.com. Move also requested a forensic examination of the said device.
“Move readily satisfies the standards for the entry of a preliminary injunction and an order authorizing limited expedited forensic discovery,” the injunction request reads. “With a properly crafted order, the court can help Move stop further misappropriation of trade secrets and ensure that it ceases to use its computer systems.” of unauthorized access, prevent further damage, and determine where Move’s stolen information was sent.”
Genetic boxer | Image source: CoStar
In an email to Inman, CoStar Group general counsel Gene Boxer described the preliminary injunction as a “knee-jerk filing” and another “PR stunt” for Realtor.com because the two Competition among residential portal giants is intensifying.
“Last week, we noticed that plaintiffs with genuine concerns about trade secrets would file for an injunction when they filed a complaint, but Move did not, and we predict they will file such a motion now that we have woken them up,” Boxer said In a statement to Inman. “This is exactly what happened. Realtor.com’s motion confirms that they were using a mid-level employee as collateral and there is zero evidence that CoStar was involved. None.
Inman also contacted Realtor.com; however, a company spokesperson said: “[Realtor.com] It does not comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuit is the latest chapter in Move and CoStar Group’s battle for the residential portal’s rightful second-place finish at a critical moment in the years-long portal wars.
CoStar Group caught the industry’s attention in October 2023 when it announced that its residential portal Homes.com attracted 100 million unique visitors per month in September – a metric that meant Homes.com’s traffic increased by Internal growth was 117%.
While the validity of these claims has been questioned, CoStar Group and Homes.com were quick to post information that they had surpassed Realtor.com to become the second most trafficked portal in the United States, investing $1 billion in a star-studded marketing blitz to increase traffic and Membership to this site.
CoStar Group founder and CEO Andy Florance and Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales spent much of the first quarter of 2024 at each other’s throats. Both leaders embraced the competition and touted the strength of their respective platforms at Inman Connect in New York; however, the stakes have been raised since then.
In May, Eales began putting additional pressure on Florance and CoStar Group, using his time at the National Association of Realtors’ MLS Realtors Legislative Conference forum to lambast CoStar Group for converting Homes.com web traffic data into Homes.com traffic. data.
In July, Move took Eales’ concerns to the Better Business Bureau’s National Programs National Advertising Division, which recommended that CoStar stop using “Homes.com has just hit 156 million monthly unique visitors” and “Homes.com now has double the Realtors. com traffic” in its ads because both claims are based on traffic from the Homes.com network.
CoStar Group has acquiesced to NAD’s recommendations, with recent ads highlighting Homes.com’s 100 million unique monthly visitors. The company can still highlight traffic data for the Homes.com network if it is “clearly disclosed in the body of the ad.”
The court will make a decision on the preliminary injunction at a hearing on August 14.
Email Marianne McPherson
