Intel has been ordered to pay $2.18 billion in damages to a company for patent infringement, after losing a lawsuit for patent infringement related to chip-making technology filed by VLSI Technology . It is one of the largest patent damages award in US. Intel violated two patents related to chip-making which were owned by VLSI Technology, the jury ruled. It ordered Intel to pay $1.5 billion for infringing one patent and $675 million for the other.
The jury rejected Intel’s denial of infringing the patents and its argument that one patent was invalid because it claimed to cover work done by Intel engineers. In the argument, Intel lawyer William Lee of WilmerHale told that the patents had been owned by Dutch chipmaker NXP Semiconductors Inc., which would get a cut of any damage award.
He also argued that VLSI Technology, founded four years ago, has no products and its only potential revenue is this lawsuit. He also argued that the company was entitled to no more than $2.2 million.
Intel has been dominating the chips industry, which is worth around $400 billion, for decades but the company is now struggling to maintain its lead. The patent damage award is about half of Intel’s fourth-quarter profit. Sources said, Intel will likely appeal, but even if the company has to pay. However, it has more than enough cash to pay the penalty.
