“We resolved the dispute amicably,” said Net Gain SEO Managing Partner.Betta Spa founder says it's 'nowhere near' the $4 million settlement he originally sought
A more than $4 million 2022 lawsuit against Oro-Medonte-based Vetta Spa has been settled out of court.
The settlement amount is confidential.
Net Gain SEO Inc. Managing Partner Drew Decker said in a statement that “we amicably resolved the dispute for an undisclosed amount,” adding that he is “satisfied with the amount” and “looks forward to moving forward.” ” he added.
Eric Harkonen, founder and president of Vetta Spa, echoed Dekker's sentiments.
“We have talked about this and after the legal discussions we have come to some realization that this is not as big an issue as it used to be, but let's resolve this issue and move forward,” Harkonnen said. .
Harkonnen could not reveal the settlement amount, but said it was “nowhere near” the $4 million he originally sought.
As previously reported in January 2023 orillia mattersOn July 7, 2022, Net Gain SEO Inc. filed a claim against Vetta Spa and Harkonen for more than $4 million for breach of contract, “damages for unjust enrichment, security system violations, and intellectual property theft.” submitted a document.
NetGain, which provides search engine optimization and web development services, announced that on or about March 1, 2019, while Betta was preparing to open the spa, Harkonnen was providing web services to NetGain on behalf of Betta. and claimed that they had agreed to provide digital marketing services. The property is located on North Line 3 in Oro-Medonte Township, approximately 20 minutes northeast of Barrie.
The complaint states that the contract states that Vetta will pay Netgain $6,000 per month for 10 months, a total of $60,000 in pre-production advertising, and $8,000 per month for three years for ongoing online advertising services. After Betta's operation begins.
The complaint stated that when the COVID-19 outbreak occurred, subsequent construction delays caused NetGain's work schedule to be extended.
According to the complaint, Betta asked NetGain in September 2020 for a monthly payment reduction to help with cash flow.
According to the complaint, Mr. Betta, Mr. Harkonnen, and Netgain temporarily reduced Netgain's monthly bill by 1,500 yen until Betta secured more financing or improved its cash flow once the business was operational. It is said that they verbally agreed to reduce the amount to $1.
The complaint also states that Betta will maintain Netgain's services for a monthly fee of $6,000 for operations once it opens.
The complaint states that around mid-October 2021, “it became apparent to Net Gain that Vetta was having significant problems paying reduced invoices in a timely manner.”
The example cited was that Betta had unpaid invoices for more than 80 days and had only made small payments.
NetGain sent numerous emails throughout 2021 expressing concern about not being paid, and Harkonnen allegedly responded to an email sent around December 30, according to the claim. In the statement, President Betta is said to have “simply advised Netgain to do so.'' There was no time to devote to that concern, and construction issues related to the Vetta took priority. ”
Regarding the security breach portion of the complaint, Netgain claimed that Vetta had asked at least three times where the passwords for its social media sites were located.
The complaint states that on January 5, 2022, Netgain noticed unusual activity regarding passwords for Vetta social media accounts. At the time, Net Gain believed that Vetta was changing the password to prevent him from accessing his account without paying. Netgain said it immediately changed all passwords.
On or about April 5, 2022, NetGain allegedly received an email from Harkonen informing it that the Vetta website had been “moved to a different server.” Net Gain claims this is because Vetta “unlawfully accessed” Net Gain's servers on which his website is hosted and copied files, content, and intellectual property, and that Vetta or Vetta's agents I understood that to mean “illegal access” to his Net Gain server. To profit from unpaid products or services.
The complaint states that NetGain hired IT experts who determined that there were numerous attempts by outside parties to gain access to NetGain's servers.
Net Gain claimed in its 22-page statement of claim that “the current unpaid account balance is $425,943.60, excluding HST.”
Vetta Spa previously settled two lawsuits with Leading Edge Earthworks out of court. Settlement amounts in these cases are also confidential.