SOURCE Entrepreneur Media, Inc.

IRVINE, Calif., Sept 24, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- To protect the integrity of one of the most recognized and relied upon sources of business information for entrepreneurs and franchisors, Entrepreneur Media, Inc. (EMI) today filed a lawsuit against former employees who it alleges stole its franchise ranking concept, known as the Franchise 500(R).

The dispute centers on the behavior of Rieva Lesonsky, the former Editorial Director for the consumer publisher. Shortly after voluntarily ending her 26-year employment with EMI in April 2008, Lesonsky created a company, SMB Connects, and is performing freelance editorial work for AllBusiness.com that duplicates EMI's signature rankings.
EMI claims that Lesonsky began contacting its customers and soliciting them to complete an application for an "Annual Franchise 300 Ranking" with AllBusiness.com. The application was substantially similar to the one EMI has used for its Franchise 500(R) rankings for the last thirty years.

The information EMI collects from its list of over 1,800 franchisors nationwide is highly valued by EMI's audience. In addition, EMI considers that information and the exclusive formula it uses to calculate its rankings to be trade secrets. Further, EMI claims that the use of "Franchise 300" violates its own federally-registered trademarks for "FRANCHISE 500(R)".