Key facts
- Quectel accuses Telit of a disinformation campaign.
- Quectel claims Telit falsely alleged its modules could be manipulated by the Chinese government.
- The Pentagon added Quectel to its list of companies allegedly aiding China's military in January.
- Quectel is suing Telit for commercial disparagement, false advertising, cybersquatting, unfair competition, and deceptive and unfair trade practices.
Chinese wireless device maker Quectel sued rival Telit on Friday, accusing it of a disinformation campaign that harmed its customer relationships and led the Pentagon to add Quectel to a list of companies allegedly aiding Beijing's military. Quectel claims Telit promoted false allegations that its modules could be manipulated by the Chinese government. Telit, which operates as Telit Cinterion, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Quectel is a leading supplier of Internet of Things (IoT) modules, and Boca Raton, Florida-based Telit is a competitor. The Pentagon added Quectel in January to its list of companies it says work with China's military. Quectel sued the Pentagon in May, denying the allegation and saying it was causing it serious economic harm. The US Department of Defense is barred from procuring goods, services or technology from companies on the list. Quectel sued Telit for commercial disparagement, false advertising, cybersquatting, unfair competition and deceptive and unfair trade practices, alleging a Telit employee registered a quectel.us domain name and used it to redirect traffic to a disparaging Wikipedia page.