Brightpoint settles lawsuit with vendor

Indianapolis-based Brightpoint Inc. has settled a lawsuit it filed in February against a Massachusetts software provider that Brightpoint accused of failing to deliver on contractual promises.

The distributor of wireless phones agreed on Tuesday to drop its complaint against Emptoris Inc., according to Marion Superior Court documents, which provided no details about the settlement.

Attorneys for both companies did not return phone calls seeking comment.
 
Brightpoint accused Emptoris of committing fraud and negligence as well as breaching its agreement and warranty. It sought reimbursement of roughly $3 million it paid Emptoris, in addition to damages related to the $2 million it spent to fix the software that “for the most part was a complete failure,” according to the Feb. 18 suit.

“Simply put, over the past two years, Emptoris has consistently over-promised and under-delivered in every aspect of its software and its services,” Brightpoint said in the court filing. “The software was such a failure and such an impediment to Brightpoint’s business that Brightpoint had no alternative except to stop using the software.”

Emptoris denied the allegations and was surprised to learn that a complaint had been filed, a company spokesman said early this month via e-mail.

Brightpoint’s formal relationship with Emptoris began in October 2008, when the two entered into a contract that called for Emptoris to provide Brightpoint with "spend management" and "spend analysis" software.