Court Accepts Supply-Chain Patent Case

The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether a patent holder can seek royalties from multiple companies involved in the computer manufacturing process.

LG Electronics acquired several technology patents and then negotiated a license deal with Intel Corp. giving it the unrestricted right to “make, use and sell” products using the patents, according to the cert petition (PDF posted by SCOTUSblog). LG now contends that computer makers who purchase Intel products are infringing its patents.

The cert petition was filed by a group of Taiwanese firms, led by Quanta Computer Inc., the Associated Press reports. They contend the first sale of rights to Intel extinguished LG’s patents.

The petition contends LG is “holding the entire computer industry hostage for billions of dollars in duplicative royalties that under this court’s precedents have clearly been exhausted.”