JUDGMENT

RK Nathan J:

Facts

The 1st plaintiff is a businesswoman involved in the tourism and hotel industry and is the main shareholder and executive director of several companies connected with tourism and hotel services, including SMAS Travels Sdn Bhd, SMAS Rent A Car Sdn Bhd, Traveltrade Sdn Bhd, Residence Hotels Management Sdn Bhd, which runs several hotels including the Hotel Armada

Petaling Jaya and Residence Resort Paka in Trengganu. She is also a director and shareholder in a company whose shares are listed in the first board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange, that is, Lien Hoe Corporation Berhad, and is also well known to the public, particularly to those in the tourism and hotel industry as "Nonni Mahmood". The 2nd plaintiff is also a businesswoman involved in the tourism and hotel services industry. She is also the main shareholder and director of several companies dealing with tourism and hotel services, including Residence Hotels Management Sdn Bhd, which runs several hotels, including the Hotel Armada in Petaling Jaya and Residence Resort Paka in Trengganu and she was also a member of the board of directors of the Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board which is under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism, and she is also well known to the public, particularly to those in the tourism and hotel industry, as "Rohana Ramli". Since both the fathers of both the plaintiffs were close friends, the 2nd plaintiff used to virtually live with the 1st plaintiff and her father virtually adopted the 2nd plaintiff as his 12th child. It was inevitable therefore that both the plaintiffs would team up to run a hotel management company called Residence Hotels Management Sdn Bhd (management company) since the 2nd plaintiff personally had the knowhow in hotel management having earlier worked as the director of marketing for the Hilton Hotel and then moving on to the Pan Pacific Hotels & Resorts. It is not in dispute that both the plaintiffs have had at least 20 years of experience in the hotel industry. The plaintiffs' management company now manages and operates the Hotel Armada in Petaling Jaya, the Residence Resort Paka in Paka, Trengganu, the Crescent Bay Resort in Yue Yang City, China, and the Residence Hotel at Universiti Tenaga Nasional at Bangi, Selangor.

Before I consider the articles in question, it is necessary to narrate certain other relevant background facts. The plaintiffs jointly set up a company called Seamos Marketing Sdn Bhd (Seamos) with two other British citizens who owned a British company called Byrom Consultants Ltd (Byrom). The commonwealth games was set to take place in Kuala Lumpur. Visitors, tourists and participants of the games needed accommodation. For this purpose Sukom Ninety Eight Bhd (Sukom) was set up to manage the commonwealth games. Sukom then set up a body called Sukom Accommodation Bureau (Bureau) to be in charge of providing accommodation during the commonwealth games on behalf of Sukom. Byrom was also involved in the tourism and hotel services and had had extensive experience during the previous World Cup and other international tournaments and in organising hotel accommodation and the related services. The project coordinator for Byrom was one John Raymond Eades. Sometime in May 1996 Byrom was invited by Sukom to present, at the Hotel Istana, a package by which Byrom proposed to manage, coordinate and control the hotel accommodation and reservation system for the commonwealth games, for Sukom. The plaintiffs together with over 70 other hotel representatives were invited for this presentation. The plaintiffs teamed up with Byrom and formed Seamos to make a bid with Sukom. The plaintiffs were impressed with Byrom's Room Reservation System form of check-in, which they found "unusual, effective and efficient". They wanted to also at the same time learn from Byrom this technique which would benefit their local hotel and tourism industry and enhance their hotel management services. It