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Samsung, SanDisk sign flash memory cross-licensing, supply deals
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Samsung Electronics and SanDisk have signed a definitive agreement to renew the cross-license of their semiconductor patent portfolios. The companies also agreed on a flash memory supply deal under which Samsung will continue to make available to SanDisk a guaranteed portion of its flash memory production output. The new agreements become effective when the current cross-license and supply agreements expire on August 14 and will run for seven years from that date.
The companies said that the new patent cross-license deal includes rights to each party’s patents broadly covering multilevel cell flash memory and flash storage systems, but does not license either party’s patent claims specific to 3-D memory technology. Over the life of the new license, the estimated effective rate of the fixed payments and royalties is expected to be approximately half of the effective rate in recent years under the current license.
Financial terms of the agreements were not disclosed.