Flash maker Spansion has filed a lawsuit against Samsung Electronics, accusing the South Korean electronics giant of multiple patent violations.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Delaware and Spansion also filed an official complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission -- with the flash maker deciding to make a case with the ITC because the commission will likely move faster than U.S. courts.
Spansion hopes it can have the sale of Apple iPod MP3 players, Research in Motion (RIM) BlackBerry smartphones and other similar technologies temporarily stopped in the United States until a settlement can be reached.
At least "one hundred million MP3 players, cell phones, digital cameras and other consumer electronic devices" using Samsung flash memory technology are violating patents currently owned by Spansion. The products have an estimated total of $30 billion.
Ten patents were named in Spansion's ITC case against Samsung. Spansion seeks monetary damages and the injunction to stop importing goods in the federal case, related to at least six patents.
The move is a "bold legal move," according to Caris & Co. analyst Betsy Van Hees, who warned it could be a few years before anything actually happens from the lawsuit. It could still take the ITC between 12 and 16 months before it makes a ruling, and it could issue a ruling where Samsung has to pay but allows the import of products.
Consumers will most likely not be affected because patent-infringement lawsuits often times are settled out of court.
Spansion currently is the No. 3 global flash maker, but is specifically known for selling NOR flash memory, which is used to help store software in mobile phones. However, the company says it owns patents related to NAND flash memory.
