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 Patent License Enforcement
- Giant computer company threatens smaller competitor: "Pay up or else!"
- Teklicon given 11 patents for prior art research
- In 2 weeks, a team of 6 Teklicon experts uncovered Title 35, Section 102 (anticipatory) prior art for 3 patents
- In 6 weeks, Teklicon's experts uncovered 102 prior art on 8 patents. Client delivered 12 more patents for analysis
- In 8 weeks, Teklicon uncovered 102 class prior art for a total of 11 patents.
- At 10 weeks client was offered significantly reduced patent license agreement terms
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Theft of Trade Secrets
- Key design engineers leave large semiconductor company, form new company and make products with circuits copied from patents.
- Aledged violations cover 11 patents with hundreds of claims. . .a difficult problem for a jury to understand.
- Teklicon expert effectively explains complex linear technology issues in preliminary hearing.
- Judge strongly suggests the new company settle with the previous employer; Teklicon's client achieves reasonable settlement.
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Enforcing Patents on the Computer Industry
- February 1990: Major semiconductor company threatens numerous PC clone manufacturers with multiple "system" patents.
- Early 1990: Teklicon engaged by multiple clients to investigate patents and seek prior art.
- Fall 1990: Major semiconductor company files suit against four of the manufacturers
- Fall 1990: Teklicon large and sophisticated relational database of prior art, validity and infringement arguments.
- Summer 1991: Database reaches 342 prior art documents and Teklicon's team develops comprehensive array of validity and infringement arguments.
- March 1993: Plaintiff caves in. Case closed.
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Heart Attack
- Alarm company sold defective system to homeowner.
- Housewife tried to use system when husband suffered heart attack; system malfunctioned, locked up and would not release the Telephone line. Husband left in a vegetative state.
- Alarm company blamed problems with Telephone company switch and lines.
- Teklicon experts analyzed the alarm system and discovered defects. Client awarded $12M in damages.
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Too Little, Too Late
- Add-in memory board manufacturer claimed bankruptcy due to lack of product from chip supplier; demanded $26M, trebled to $78M under RICO statutes.
- Component was a sole-sourced, clock/calendar chip, not a memory chip; 3-month delay in product release due to design oversight, clock/calendar chip was only an enhancement.
- Three Teklicon experts established that the delay was reasonable to provide quality part; memory board could have been sold without chip.
- Plaintiff awarded only $45K on a one of of 29 alleged counts.
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Explaining the Real World
- Creative citizen produces interesting visual effects by using music and other audio signals to produce contortions in TV picture. Citizen gets a patent on the idea.
- Inventor asserts patent against video game manufacturers who implement moving images by injecting bitmap into TV signal during horizontal retrace interval, which is 15.8 KHz, concidentally also in the audio range.
- Major video game manufacturers call on Teklicon experts to explain that video game image generation has nothing to do with audio signal.
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Contract Performance
- Giant telecommunications company contracts with division of giant electronics manufacturer to develop a custom subscriber line carrier system.
- Developer delivers prototype 2 years late, and it still doesn't work. Customer terminates agreement. Developer sues.
- Teklicon's research and testimonial experts proved to jury that customer was correct in its judgment, the custom system was poorly designed and unable to meet contractual requirements.
- Jury voted in favor of defendant, Teklicon's client, dismissing claims of over $300M.
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License violation
- Defendant claimed that his graphics software package, newly offered to users of several computer manufacturers, was only coincidentally similar to a product (including source code) licensed months earlier for use only on one platform.
- Teklicon's finding was to the contrary. So was the court's. Our experts penetrated the language barrier created by porting the product from system to system and found the smoking gun: Defendant's software was virtually line-by-line identical to the licensed product.
- Our client was awarded over $2M
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Technology Transfer
- Dominant supplier of custom CAD systems to the publishing industry sells the technology to our client.
- System has numerous design faults and cannot be manufactured to expected specifications.
- In attempts to resolve problems with transfer of technology, client misses market opportunity. Client sues.
- On behalf of client, Teklicon expert analyzes engineering and manufacturing specifications, prototype product, etc. Expert testimony at trial proves technology was not as advertised, and could not be manufactured as documented.
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License violation
- Defendant claimed that his graphics software package, newly offered to users of several computer manufacturers, was only coincidentally similar to a product (including source code) licensed months earlier for use only on one platform.
- Teklicon's finding was to the contrary. So was the court's. Our experts penetrated the language barrier created by porting the product from system to system and found the smoking gun: Defendant's software was virtually line-by-line identical to the licensed product.
- Our client was awarded over $2M
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Inflated Claim
- Finished electronic goods suffered water damage while awaiting shipment. Manufacturer submitted substantial insurance claim for damages and cost of repair.
- Insuror, on the verge of paying claim, sought second opinion from Teklicon.
- Teklicon expert spent a total of only 2.3 hours on the job, documented unreasonably inflated factors in the policyholder's claim and reduced the claim amount by 40%.
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Groundwater Contamination
- Major semiconductor manufacturer's claims amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars for costs of environmental remediation are denied by myriad insurance carriers.
- Insurors blame environment damage on intentional acts not consistent with industry standards of care.
- Exhaustive research by team of 6 Teklicon experts proved that client acted in compliance with the regulatory requirements as they changed over time, and with industry standards for semiconductor manufacturing processes. . .Case settled.
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Complex Litigation
- When the number of suits, venues and law firms each exceeds the number of parties. . .Call Teklicon.
- That's what attorneys for a major offshore semiconductor manufacturer did when their client was hit with a huge patent suit.
- Teklicon assembled a world-class team of diverse specialists, and in 5 months we:
- Performed infringement analysis and validity analysis on ten IC fabrication process and circuit design patents.
- Built technical case for countersuit for infringement of 7 of client's own patents.
- Supplied technical and marketplace data to support additional counter-offensives in antitrust suit and ITC claims.
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