Cash for quadrants? Gartner sued on 'pay-for-play' claims
Analyst dismisses as 'without merit' allegations from NetScout that its research favours those who spend big sums on consultancy
NetScout has launched litigation against Gartner accusing the analyst's Magic Quadrant of favouring IT vendors who spend big sums on its consultancy services.
Court documents filed with the Connecticut Superior Court earlier this month reveal that the network performance management specialist is suing Gartner for what it believes is a contravention of the state's Unfair Trade Practices Act. The Massachusetts-based vendor begins by pouring scorn on the suggestion that Gartner is an "independent and objective company", claiming "its business model is extortionate by its very nature".
The filing adds: "Its substantial success is due to the worst-kept secret in the IT industry: Gartner has a ‘pay-to-play' business model that, by its design, rewards Gartner clients who spend substantial sums on its various services by ranking them favourably in its influential Magic Quadrant research reports... and punishes technology companies that choose not to spend substantial sums on Gartner services."
The lawsuit acknowledges the "immense influence" wielded by the research house, claiming that where a manufacturer places in the Magic Quadrant can define whether or not it is successful. NetScout claims it has suffered the fallout of an unfavourable ranking, disputing its placing in the recent Networking Performance Monitoring and Diagnostics report. The vendor was ranked as a 'challenger', rather than a 'leader' - an undesirable result it chalks up to the fact that it refuses to line Gartner's pockets.
"Despite Gartner's not-so-veiled overtures, NetScout has not engaged Gartner for ‘consulting' services in the past five years," states the lawsuit filing. "NetScout suffered the consequences in a recent Gartner Magic Quadrant report."
The vendor outlines its belief that the after-effects of the Gartner research have hurt its standing in the market and hit it in the pocket.
"The unfair and deceptive business practices employed by Gartner have damaged NetScout and its business through, among other things, reputational harm and lost business opportunities," it states. "Gartner has further damaged NetScout by forcing it to expend considerable sums of money to counteract Gartner's false and defamatory statements within the marketplace."
In a statement, Andrew Spender, group vice president of corporate communications at Gartner, claimed the analyst contests the charges laid out by NetScout and intends to defend itself.
"We are aware of a complaint filed by NetScout Systems, Inc in a Connecticut court that stems from its unhappiness with NetScout's placement in a Gartner Magic Quadrant," he said. "While it's not our practice to discuss pending litigation, we do consider this complaint to be without merit and intend to defend ourselves and the integrity of our research processes vigorously. We remain committed to providing our clients with independent research and advice about the products and services that we cover and upon which they have relied for decades."