Infineon and Elpida reach agreement over legal dispute

Infineon originally filed a complaint against Elpida and its customers in February 2010 stating that the company had infringed its patents covering key inventions in semiconductor processing and device manufacturing. Infineon's complaint with the ITC sought an exclusion order that would have barred all infringing dram chips and products that are imported by Elpida or Elpida's customers from entry into the US. In March, the ITC opened its investigation based on the complaint filed. Elpida subsequently filed two lawsuits in the US District Court, Eastern District of Virginia. The two companies have settled the dispute through a broad patent cross license relating to semiconductor technology. The specific terms and conditions of the license are confidential. "Infineon is pleased to have reached this agreement with Elpida, and we look forward to a lasting peace between the companies," said Prof Dr Hermann Eul (pictured), member of the management board, responsible for sales, marketing, technology and R&D at Infineon. "This outcome is further affirmation of our ongoing efforts to protect our intellectual property rights and business interests."