SANTA CLARA, Calif.--Intel Corp. and Taiwan's Via Technologies Inc. today announced a settlement to their legal battle over a 1998 licensing agreement covering chip-set technology for PC microprocessors. Via will once again be licensed to produce certain chip sets for Intel's Pentium III and Celeron processors under a new licensing agreement.
Under the settlement, Intel will receive a lump sum payment from Via Technologies, which will also pay ongoing royalty fees to the Santa Clara chip giant. Details about the payments and other terms in the settlement were not released.
The settlement dismisses patent infringement suits filed by Intel in the U.K., Singapore and before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), but it will not affect a U.S. lawsuit in San Francisco over chip sets supporting processors from Intel competitors. Via has been aggressively offering chip set support for microprocessors from Intel's archrival, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. The Taiwan company has made its own entry into the personal computer MPU segment after acquiring technology from National Semiconductor Corp. and Integrated Device Technology Inc.
Via Technologies' market share in the PC chip set business has mushroomed to between 50-and-60%, according to analyst estimates. The new pact will likely increase Via's business in chip sets.
Ironically, the settlement comes only two weeks after Intel itself finally unveiled its long-delayed 815 chip set supporting PC133 memories with APG4X graphics capability. That chip set now competes with Via's Apollo Pro133. It was Intel's reluctance to build a PC133 chip set while standing totally behind Rambus DRAMs that opened up the door for Via to gain ground in the segment, according to market observers.
The modified licensing agreement now gives Via the right to produce certain P5 and P6 chip sets with Intel's patents.
Neither company said if the new license agreement covered pending Via chip sets for double data rate SDRAMs for Intel's Pentium III processors in desktop PCs. The Santa Clara company is without a desktop DDR chip set, and a bevy of rivals--including Via--are gearing up to support Intel processors with the new higher speed memories.
Sources suggested Intel might now welcome DDR support for its processors from Via and other independent chip set suppliers. A wave of DDR chip sets are expected to the market this fall to support AMD's Athlon processors in desktop computer designs. Without a DDR desktop chip set of its own, Intel might need Via and the other suppliers to fill his gap so it can compete against AMD.
--Additional reporting by Jack Robertson
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