02 Sep 07 Bajaj Auto – TVS Motors Spat : A tale of 2 spark plugs

Bajaj Auto has threatened to take chennai based TVS Motors to the courts for alleged copyright infringement of the DTSi (Digital Twin Spark ignition) technology that Bajaj Auto claims to have patented. Bajaj Auto has been using the DTSi technology in its pulsar and discover bikes which cover 50% of Bajaj Auto’s total sales. Two spark plugs have been used previously in the engines of many foreign bikes and is hence not a new concept. However, Bajaj Auto claims that it had first used the technology in smaller engines (100-200cc). On the other hand TVS Motors claims that their new controlled combustion variable timing intelligent technology engines (CC-CTi) are a product of their in-house R&D in their housur facility for the past 2-3 years. With the news of copyright infringenment coming out during the weekend, it would be interesting to see how the share prices of TVS Motors and Bajaj Auto move at the opening bell on Monday.