Actions Seek to Stop Sale of ST’s NAND and NOR Chips
SUNNYVALE , CA, Feb. 10, 2006 - SanDisk® Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) announced today that the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) has instituted an investigation in response to a complaint filed by SanDisk. The investigation, entitled In the Matter of Certain NOR and NAND Flash Memory Devices and Products Containing Same, has been assigned Investigation No. 337-TA-560.
The ITC will investigate:
* Whether NOR flash memory chips manufactured by STMicroelectronics and sold in the United States infringe SanDisk’s United States Patent No. 5,172,338 and United States Patent No. 5,991,517, and whether ST’s NOR flash memory chips should therefore be barred from importation into and sale in the United States;
* Whether NAND flash memory chips manufactured by STMicroelectronics and sold in the infringe SanDisk’s United States Patent No. 5,991,517, and United States Patent No. 6,542,956, and whether ST’s NAND flash memory chips should therefore be barred from importation into and sale in the United States.
The STMicroelectronics products that will be investigated include both binary and multi-state NOR flash memory chips, as well as binary and multi-state NAND flash memory chips.
In recent weeks, SanDisk has also filed actions claiming infringement of United States Patent No. 5,991,517 and United States Patent No. 6,542,956 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, where an action involving United States Patent No. 5,172,338 is already underway.
"We are looking forward to a speedy decision by the ITC," said E. Earle Thompson, SanDisk's Chief Intellectual Property Counsel. "SanDisk has developed a fundamental patent portfolio in the flash memory industry. SanDisk possesses hundreds of patents covering all aspects of flash memory design. SanDisk will vigorously protect its intellectual property against companies who seek to use SanDisk technology without a license."
About SanDisk
SanDisk, the world’s largest supplier of flash memory data storage card products, designs, manufactures and markets industry-standard, solid-state data, digital imaging and audio storage products using its patented, high density flash memory and controller technology. SanDisk is based in Sunnyvale, CA.