Consumer-Rating Service Sues Rival for Stealing Files

Consumer-rating service Angie's List is suing a rival startup, claiming its founder stole thousands of files from Angie's List Web service in an effort to start his own company. The suit alleges that Christopher "Kit" Cody -- the founder of Washington, D.C.-based Trustys.com -- joined Angie's List as a regular member, then used an automated "bot" software program to harvest service-provider reports, ratings and other information then used for Trustys.com.