MOSAID widens DRAM patent allegations

September 1, 2006 – MOSAID Technologies Inc. has filed an amended complaint in which it adds two more patents to infringement litigation centering on DRAM products from Micron Technology Inc., Powerchip Semiconductor Corp., and ProMOS Technologies, bring to 11 the number of allegedly infringed patents. One of the new patents at issue also targets Micron’s CMOX image sensor products, the company’s second-largest and fastest-growing product line, according to MOSAID.

In August, Mosaid initiated new litigation against memory chipmakers Micron, Powerchip, and ProMOS alleging infringement of nine US patents concerning DRAM technologies including word line drivers, supply charge pump and regulators, and delayed locked-loop implementations. Mosaid has settled similar patent litigation with Infineon and its Qimonda memory spinoff, as well as with Hynix, Philips, and Samsung.

Meanwhile, Micron has filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in its case vs. Mosaid in a court in San Jose, CA, seeking a declaration of non-infringement and invalidity with respect to 14 of Mosaid’s US patents. Micron is among the last memory firms who have not agreed to a licensing deal with Mosaid, which has raked in nearly $300 million in patent settlements and future royalties from other memorychip makers, and expects roughly 80% of its FY06 sales coming from patent licensing, noted Canada’s Financial Post.

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