Broadcom, Qualcomm Settle More Patent Disputes

Qualcomm and Broadcom continue to settle their differences with the dismissal of two more patent-infringement lawsuits.

Qualcomm said on Friday that it had agreed with Broadcom to dismiss patent-infringement claims and trade secret misappropriation charges asserted by the companies in two lawsuits.

The dismissals don’t mean peace between the battling companies, however. Additional suits between the companies filed in California and in the U.S. International Trade Commission will go forward, Qualcomm said.

The dismissed claims include charges of infringement of six Broadcom patents and four Qualcomm patents as well as claims by each company that the other had misappropriated trade secrets. The first of the relevant trials would have begun on March 19.

In February, the companies settled claims relating to two Broadcom patents and two Qualcomm patents. That settlement avoided a trial that would have started earlier this month.

The chip makers, which both specialize in wireless technologies, have been involved in a legal battle over patents since 2005.

-Nancy Gohring, IDG News Service (Seattle Bureau)