AKRON, Ohio, May 10, 2004 -- The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has filed an antitrust lawsuit against suppliers of EPDM alleging price fixing and anti-competitive conduct in violation of the federal Sherman Act antitrust laws.

The lawsuit was filed May 7 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Akron, Ohio.

"Goodyear, in the best interests of our shareholders, is seeking to recover the overcharges paid as a result of the anti-competitive conduct of these companies," said C. Thomas Harvie, Goodyear’s senior vice president, general counsel and secretary.

"Goodyear is a significant global purchaser of EPDM and Goodyear spends substantial amounts on these products."

Goodyear’s lawsuits do not specify a damage amount. That, the company said, will be determined during the course of court proceedings.

EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) is a synthetic rubber that is used in rubber-containing products to improve their strength, and EPDM has excellent resistance to heat, oxidation, ozone and weather aging due to its stable, saturated polymer structure. Goodyear uses EPDM in tires, hoses and belts, for example.

In the EPDM case, Goodyear is suing:

• Bayer A.G., Leverkusen, Germany;
• Bayer Polymers LLC, Pittsburgh, Pa.;
• Bayer Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa.;
• Crompton Corporation, Middlebury, Conn.;
• Uniroyal Chemical Company Inc., Middlebury, Conn.;
• The Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Mich.;
• E.I. duPont de Nemours & Company, Wilmington, Del.;
• DuPont Dow Elastomers LLC, Wilmington, Del.;
• DSM Elastomers B.V., Sitterb, The Netherlands;
• DSM CoPolymer, Inc., Baton Rouge, La.;
• Polimeri Europa S.p.A., Milan, Italy;
• Polimeri Europa Americas, Inc., Houston, Texas

Goodyear’s complaint reserves the right to add other defendants based upon discovery and proceedings in the case.

Goodyear is the world’s largest tire company. Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, the company manufactures tires and engineered rubber products in more than 90 facilities in 28 countries. It has marketing operations in almost every country around the world. Goodyear employs about 86,000 people worldwide.