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Investigation of Toshiba Based on Lexar Complaint
Mark Peters : May 14th 2006 - 00:07 CET
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 Investigation of Toshiba Based on Lexar Complaint : Lexar Media, a world leader in advanced digital media technologies, today announced that the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has voted to commence an investigation into whether Toshiba Corporation, Toshiba America, Inc., and Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc., are infringing three Lexar patents. The products being investigated include Toshiba's flash chips and flash cards, including among others: Toshiba's 16-gigabit multi-level cell NAND flash chips; Toshiba's 8-gigabit single level cell and multi-level cell NAND flash chips; Toshiba's 4-gigabit multi-level cell NAND flash chips and Toshiba's 1-gigabit single level cell NAND flash chips.
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 Toshiba NAND flash chips and cards
This is the first step towards possible U.S. government action to exclude certain of Toshiba's NAND flash chips and cards from the U.S. market. Lexar, in a complaint filed with the ITC on April 11, 2006, is seeking all possible relief, including a permanent exclusion order to bar the importation into the United States of Toshiba's infringing NAND flash chips and cards, as well as products that incorporate Toshiba's infringing chips. Additionally, Lexar's complaint requests a cease-and-desist order to bar further sales and distribution of infringing products that have been imported into the USA by Toshiba.
Lexar Media Patented technology
The case has been referred to ITC Administrative Law Judge Robert L. Barton, Jr., who will schedule and hold an evidentiary hearing and then render an initial determination. Judge Barton is expected to issue this initial determination sometime early to mid-next year. The ITC is then likely to hand down its final determination during the third quarter of 2007. Certain of the patented technology at issue in this complaint is related to the technology that a jury, after a six-week trial in March 2005, found Toshiba had misappropriated from Lexar. That case is now on appeal.
About Lexar Media
Lexar is a leading marketer and manufacturer of NAND flash memory products including memory cards, USB flash drives, card readers and ATA controller technology for the digital photography, consumer electronics, industrial and communications markets. The company holds over 98 issued or allowed controller and system patents, and licenses its technology to companies including Olympus Corporation, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., SanDisk Corporation and Sony Corporation. Lexar sells its memory cards worldwide and through an exclusive agreement, also sells memory cards under the Kodak brand. Headquartered in Fremont, California, Lexar has operations in countries around the world.
About Toshiba America Electronic Components
Combining quality and flexibility with design engineering expertise, TAEC brings a breadth of advanced, next-generation technologies to its customers. This broad offering includes memory and flash memory-based storage solutions, a broad range of discrete devices, displays, medical tubes, ASICs, custom SOCs, microprocessors, microcontrollers and wireless components for the computing, wireless, networking, automotive and digital consumer markets.TAEC is an independent operating company owned by Toshiba America, Inc., a subsidiary of Toshiba Corp. (Toshiba), Japan’s second largest semiconductor manufacturer and the world’s ninth largest integrated manufacturer of electric and electronic equipment. In almost 130 years of operation, Toshiba has recorded numerous firsts and made valuable contributions to technology & society.
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