Science & Technology
Science and Technology
Science and Technology
Tue, December 15, 2009 
OTTAWA, CANADA--(Marketwire - Dec. 15, 2009) - Wi-LAN Inc. ("WiLAN" or the "Company") (TSX:WIN), a leading technology innovation and licensing company, today announced that WiLAN has settled all patent litigation with Buffalo Technology (USA) Inc. and Melco Holdings, Inc. (collectively, "Buffalo"). Under the settlement, Buffalo has signed a running royalty license to certain WiLAN wireless technologies. Other terms of the agreement are confidential.
"We are pleased that we have been able to settle our litigation with Buffalo on amicable terms and that Buffalo has signed a long-term running royalty agreement," said Jim Skippen, Chairman & CEO. "Our preference is always to negotiate reasonable license agreements, but we are fully prepared to defend our intellectual property in court if that is necessary."
Buffalo is a leading worldwide provider of innovative network solutions for the home and business - from wireless networking and storage to memory and multimedia devices. Since 1975, Buffalo has proven its commitment to delivering innovative solutions that have put the company at the forefront of infrastructure technology. Buffalo's strong international industry alliances with companies including Intel, Broadcom, Agere and Microsoft enables Buffalo to lead the industry in the development of the latest technologies into practical, easy to use tools for business and the home (i). For more information about Buffalo and its products, visit [ www.buffalotech.com ].
On October 31, 2007, WiLAN initiated litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas ("EDTX") against 22 major companies, including major laptop computer and router suppliers, alleging infringement of certain patents owned by WiLAN including WiLAN's U.S. Patent Nos. 5,282,222 (the "222 patent") and RE37,802 (the "802 patent"). To date, settlements have been reached with five of the parties named in the initial Complaint: Best Buy Co. Inc., Circuit City Stores, Inc., Texas Instruments Incorporated, Infineon Technologies AG and now Buffalo.
Since the early 1990s, WiLAN has invested millions of dollars in the development and commercialization of technologies, including Wideband Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing ("W-OFDM") and Multicode Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum ("MC-DSSS"), that have helped make advanced wireless data communications a reality. For well over a decade, WiLAN manufactured and sold wireless equipment that proved the cost and performance benefits of W-OFDM and MC-DSSS. One such product, the HOPPER DS, a 19 kilobit/second wireless modem that had a range of 10 kilometers, was commercially launched in 1994. Believing that W-OFDM was the best solution for low-cost, high-speed wireless local area networks, WiLAN and the broader wireless industry supported the specification of W-OFDM in the IEEE 802.11a Wireless Local Area Network ("WLAN") standard. Lobbying efforts by WiLAN resulted in the Federal Communications Commission certifying the use of W-OFDM in the unlicensed 2.4GHz frequency band. This paved the way for the IEEE 802.11g and 802.11n WLAN standards and a multi-billion dollar market for low-cost, high-speed Wi-Fi products, all driven by WiLAN's W-OFDM technology. WiLAN's W-OFDM and MC-DSSS technologies are covered by the 222 and 802 patents, respectively. Both patents are at issue in the laptop and router case currently underway in EDTX.
Over 85 companies, including Cisco, RIM, Nokia, Panasonic, Samsung, Fujitsu, ASUS, Infineon and Buffalo, have negotiated license agreements to certain or all of the patents at issue in WiLAN's EDTX litigations.
About WiLAN
WiLAN, founded in 1992, is a leading technology innovation and licensing company. WiLAN has licensed its intellectual property to over 210 companies worldwide. Inventions in our portfolio have been licensed by companies that manufacture or sell a wide range of communication and consumer electronics products including 3G cellular handsets, Wi-Fi-enabled laptops, Wi-Fi/DSL routers, xDSL infrastructure equipment, WiMAX base stations and V-Chip-enabled digital television receivers. WiLAN has a large and growing portfolio of more than 750 issued or pending patents. For more information: [ www.wilan.com ].
Note
(i) Source: [ www.buffalotech.com ]
Forward-looking Information
Certain statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, may include forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties that face the Company; such statements may contain such words as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions, and may be based on management's current assumptions and expectations related to all aspects of the wireless and wireline telecommunications industries and the global economy. Risks and uncertainties that may face the Company include, but are not restricted to: licensing of the Company's patents can take an extremely long time and may be subject to variable cycles; the Company is currently reliant on licensees paying royalties under existing licensing agreements and additional licensing of its patent portfolio to generate future revenues and increased cash flows; the Company may be required to establish the enforceability of its patents in court in order to obtain material licensing revenues; changes in patent laws or in the interpretation or application of patent laws could materially adversely affect the Company; a court may determine that certain of the Company's patents are not infringed by certain standards or products or may disagree with management with respect to whether one or more of the Company's patents apply to certain standards or products, which could adversely affect the Company; the Company will need to acquire or develop new patents to continue and grow its business; fluctuations in foreign exchange rates impact and may continue to impact the Company's revenues and operating expenses, potentially adversely affecting financial results; the Company has made and may make acquisitions of technologies or businesses which could materially adversely affect the Company; the Company may require investment to translate its intellectual property position into sustainable profit in the market; the generation of future V-chip revenues and the likelihood of the Company signing additional V-chip licenses could be negatively impacted by changes in government regulation; the Company is dependent on its key officers and employees; the price of the Company's common shares is volatile and subject to market fluctuation; and the Company may be negatively affected by reduced consumer spending due to the uncertainty of economic and geopolitical conditions.
These risks and uncertainties may cause actual results to differ from information contained in this release, when estimates and assumptions have been used to measure and report results. There can be no assurance that any statements of forward-looking information contained in this release will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. These and all subsequent written and oral statements containing forward-looking information are based on the estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Except as required by applicable laws, the Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any statements of forward looking information that speak only as of the date of this release. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's business are contained under the heading "Risk Factors" in WiLAN's current Annual Information Form and its other filings with the various Canadian securities regulators which are available online at [ www.sedar.com ].
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States.
All trademarks and brands mentioned in this release are the property of their respective owners.
