Mosaid, Samsung ink memory license, purchase deal

Mosaid Technologies Inc. has signed a new semiconductor patent license agreement with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd and will also purchase a significant portfolio of the memory chipmaker’s patents. In addition, the two companies have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding pursuant to the development of NAND flash technology.

Under the terms of the patent portfolio license agreement, Samsung receives a lives-of-patents license under certain patents and applications, and a five-year term license under certain other patents and applications, for memory IC products. Samsung also receives a five-year license under certain patents and applications for non-memory IC products. For the license, Samsung will make a series of fixed payments during the term. The effective date of the license is January 1. All other terms and conditions of the license agreement are confidential.

Under the terms of the patent purchase agreement, Mosaid will purchase from Samsung a portfolio of patents related to semiconductor device, circuit and processing technologies. A series of fixed payments is due to Samsung in 2014.

Under the terms of the MOU, Samsung and MOSAID will explore the potential joint development of a new high-performance NAND flash memory device incorporating Mosaid’s HLNAND memory architecture.

“Taken together, these agreements with Samsung are among the most important the company has signed in its history,” said John Lindgren, president and CEO, Mosaid. “The new semiconductor patent license agreement helps stabilize Mosaid’s current revenue stream and provides continued financial strength, while our patent portfolio is made even stronger with the acquisition of a significant number of semiconductor patents from Samsung. We are also very excited to be working on future technologies with Samsung, the world’s leading memory vendor.”

“These new agreements demonstrate the growing value of our portfolio of semiconductor memory and microcomponent patents, and provide further confirmation of our success as an intellectual property company focused on patent licensing and technology innovation,” said Michael Vladescu, VP, licensing and intellectual property, Mosaid. “In addition to licensing our memory patents, Samsung is the second company to license our microcomponent portfolio, which includes both Mosaid patents and patents exclusively licensed from third parties.”

Prior to today’s announcement, Mosaid and Samsung had, on Jan. 4, 2010, announced a standstill agreement that covered the period between the expiration of Mosaid’s existing semiconductor patent licensing agreement with Samsung on Dec. 31, 2009, and the approval of a new agreement by the board of directors of both Mosaid and Samsung.