News Article
Qimonda patents settled
Milestone in Qimonda insolvency: Settlement with U.S. subsidiaries over disputed claims
A key milestone has been reached in the insolvency proceedings concerning the assets of Qimonda AG.
Insolvency administrator Dr. Michael Jaffé has reached a settlement with the company's U.S. subsidiaries Qimonda North America Corp. and Qimonda Richmond LLC over disputed claims. At the same time, the U.S.
subsidiaries confirmed that Qimonda AG owns certain patents and patent applications.
The U.S. subsidiaries, which had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, had asserted claims of over $2.1 billion against Qimonda AG. Qimonda AG, in turn, had filed claims of more than $1.7 billion against the U.S. subsidiaries.
The U.S. subsidiaries subsequently sued the parent company in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. As a result of a mediation in London both parties reached an agreement on the mutual claims.
The two U.S. companies also had disputed the parent's ownership of over 800 patents and patent applications in an action before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Following lengthy negotiations, Qimonda North America and Qimonda Richmond have now abandoned any claims to prior or future ownership and acknowledge Qimonda AG as the absolute owner of these patents and patent applications.
Qimonda AG had filed for insolvency at the District Court in Munich on 1 April 2009. Dr. Michael Jaffé was subsequently appointed insolvency administrator. The company can now use one of the largest semiconductor IP portfolios in the world — with 9,000 patents and a large number of patent applications worldwide — without restriction.
The creditors' committees and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware responsible for the US companies have approved the settlement.
"This settlement is a key milestone for us. It has removed a major exploitation barrier for marketing and licensing," insolvency administrator Dr. Michael Jaffé said. "We were able to avoid lengthy and rather costly proceedings in the USA for the benefit of the creditors of Qimonda AG. We will now put all our efforts into continuing to exploit the patent portfolio by licensing and selling individual packages."
