By Karen Freifeld
NEW YORK, Dec 17 (Reuters) - VeriFone Systems Inc was sued
on Monday by Creative Mobile Technologies for at least $250
million over an agreement to place advertisements on monitors in
New York City taxis.
Creative Mobile claims VeriFone breached the agreement to
damage the company and remove it as a competitor, according to
the lawsuit, which was filed in New York State Supreme Court.
Andy Payment, a spokesman for VeriFone, which is based in
San Jose, California, declined to comment.
Creative Mobile was founded in 2005 to install passenger
information monitors in taxis, the lawsuit said. It now has
monitors in over 6,600 New York City taxis, as well as in taxis
in 60 other cities in 30 states.
The company, based in Queens, New York, entered into a sales
agreement with Clear Channel Taxi Media in 2006 to place
advertising on the in-taxi screens, the complaint said.
At the time, Clear Channel Taxi Media was a unit of Clear
Channel Outdoor Holdings Inc. VeriFone, a manufacturer of credit
card swipe machines, acquired Clear Channel Taxi Media in 2009.
VeriFone "maliciously violated and interfered" with Creative
Mobile's rights under the agreement, including failing to supply
the information necessary to calculate amounts due and refusing
to pay revenues on non-Creative Mobile screens, the lawsuit
said.
VeriFone also allegedly put advertisements in taxis outside
New York without offering the opportunity to Creative Mobile, as
required by the agreement.
The case is Creative Mobile Technologies v. VeriFone Systems
Inc, New York State Supreme Court, No. 654379/2012.
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