SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 25, 2013 - InvenSense, Inc. (INVN), the leading provider of MotionTracking(TM) devices, previously announced that in the initial patent litigation action brought by ST Microelectronics, Inc. (ST) (STM) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, InvenSense won its motion to stay that case in view of separate proceedings before the United States Patent Office (USPTO) challenging the validity of all of ST`s asserted patents.
All of ST`s claims asserted in that initial litigation are subject to USPTO reexamination proceedings. To date, the USPTO has determined that substantial questions of patentability exist for eight of the nine patents asserted by ST and has issued office actions rejecting ST`s asserted claims in four of the patent reexamination requests. In view of the pending USPTO reexaminations, the United States District Court for Northern California stayed the initial litigation brought by ST.
On March 12, 2013, despite the findings of the USPTO and the action of the federal district court in the first case initiated by ST, almost a year later, ST filed a new complaint with the International Trade Commission (ITC) with respect to three of the same patents it asserted in the initial federal district court case, all three of which patents are currently being re-examined by the USPTO. The claims associated with two of the three ST patents from the prior case, now in the ITC case, have already been rejected by the USPTO in initial office actions. ST is also asserting two additional patents that were not in the initial federal court litigation. InvenSense has reviewed the claims of the two additional patents asserted by ST in the ITC matter, and considers ST`s new patent claims to be wholly without merit. InvenSense will continue to vigorously defend itself before the ITC and has filed requests for inter partes review citing prior art references for each of the two additional patents-in-suit with the USPTO.
On March 12, 2013, ST also filed a second complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California with respect to the two additional patents included in the ITC matter. This new case has been stayed pending resolution of the ITC action.
With respect to one of the two additional ST patents included in the ITC action and the second federal district court case, ST`s patent claims are directed to common, non-MEMS specific, widely available CMOS semiconductor wafers with a tungsten plug. As a fabless semiconductor manufacturing company InvenSense purchases its CMOS wafers from third parties.
Finally, with respect to InvenSense`s customers included in the new ITC action brought by ST, InvenSense intends to defend both customers against ST`s claims through InvenSense`s own litigation counsel Morrison & Foerster LLP.
Management Qualitative Comments
"We are disappointed that ST is effectively wasting government agency resources and trying to do an end run around the work done and in progress with respect to ST`s patent claims at the United States Patent Office and federal district court," said Alan Krock, Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer of InvenSense. "We are also disappointed that ST chose to include end-market customers in its legal actions, but we are pleased to be able to defend those customers from ST`s claims. With respect to ST`s manufacturing process claims, we are surprised that ST chose to initiate legal action with InvenSense with respect to manufacturing-process technology widely available to and used by many semiconductor companies."
About InvenSense
InvenSense Inc. (INVN) is the world`s leading provider of MotionTracking(TM) solutions for consumer electronic devices. The company`s patented InvenSense Platform and patent-pending MotionFusion(TM) technology address the emerging needs of many mass-market consumer applications via improved performance, accuracy, and intuitive motion- and gesture-based interfaces. InvenSense technology can be found in consumer electronic products including smartphones, tablets, gaming devices, optical image stabilization, and remote controls for Smart TVs. The company`s MotionTracking products are also being integrated into a number of industrial applications. InvenSense is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and has offices in China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and Dubai. More information can be found at www.invensense.com.
©2013 InvenSense, Inc. All rights reserved. InvenSense, MotionTracking, MotionProcessing, MotionProcessor, MotionFusion, MotionApps, DMP, and the InvenSense logo are trademarks of InvenSense, Inc. Other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
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For Investor Inquiries, Contact:
Alan Krock
Chief Financial Officer
ir@invensense.com
For Press Inquiries, Contact:
David Almoslino
Director, Marketing and Communications
InvenSense, Inc.
408.988.7339 x 285
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Source: InvenSense, Inc. via Thomson Reuters ONE
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