In a proposed settlement to a lawsuit against Western Digital for using technology that could slow down drives, the company will create a compensation fund to the tune of $2.7 million dollars. Claimants must file by November 27.
in June, Western Digital agreed to settle a lawsuit about the use of shingled magnetic recording (SMR) technology, which could slow drive performance, in some of its hard drives without disclosing it. Now, JDN Legal Administration, one of the representatives for plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit, has put up details about how to get a payout.
Potential plaintiffs can file a claim at a website set up for the settlement. The payouts to claimants will be based on the size of the HDD they purchased, as well as how many they bought. Those who purchased either the 2TB or 3TB WD Red NAS Drives is eligible to receive $4.00 for each drive, while those who bought either 4TB or 6TB WD Red capacity drives are entitled to $7.00 for each drive purchased. These values may be adjusted on a pro-rata basis depending on the number of claims filed, up to 85% of the value of each drive. The specific HDD models are: WD20EFAX (2TB capacity), WD30EFAX (3TB capacity), WD40EFAX (4TB capacity), and WD60EFAX (6TB capacity) HDDs.
The lawsuit, Malone, et al v. Western Digital Corporation, claims that Western Digital misrepresented the drives' performance by not listing the usage of SMR anywhere in their specifications. Per the settlement, Western Digital will mention the use of SMR on WD Red NAS Drives for "no less than 4 years after Final Approval of the Settlement."
The next hearing is scheduled for December 22nd 2, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. PT, at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Should the judge approve the settlement proposal and the remaining legal quandaries appeased, users who filed claims will receive their share of the settlement. As is the case in these matters, filing a claim towards the settlement means that should it be made final, those who are compensated this way give up the right to sue WD about the issues in this lawsuit. If affected users do nothing, they receive no payment and, if the settlement becomes final, they'll nevertheless give up the right to sue WD and its affiliates about the issues in this lawsuit.
