MStar Semiconductor Inc (晨星科技), Taiwan's biggest maker of controllers for flat displays used in computers and televisions, said yesterday it plans to file an appeal against a patent infringement ruling that favors the plaintiff -- Genesis Microchip Inc.
Under a ruling by the International Trade Commission (ITC) over the weekend, MStar Semiconductor, along with its Taiwanese peers Media Reality Technologies Inc (晶捷科技) and Trumpion Microelectronics Inc (創品), were found guilty over infringing on a patent for a method to improve images on liquid-crystal-display (LCD) monitors.
The company has been challenging Genesis Microchip, the world's top supplier of such controllers for LCD computer monitors and flat-screen TV sets, for over a year.
The Hsinchu-based chipmaker said in response that, "MStar believes that the ITC's decision is wrong and plans to appeal the decision in US Federal Circuit Court."
The trade commission also issued an order to embargo imports of the company's display controllers into the US, as well as computer and TV screens that contain the products.
US officials will begin blocking the goods in 60 days.
"There will be no disruption to imports of new MStar chips or display monitors containing our new chips," MStar President Steve Yang (
The new products were not implicated in the ongoing patent lawsuits, he said.
One market watcher said the import ban will eat into the company's bottom line and limit its development of new chips.
"The import restriction will take a serious toll on the chipmaker, as controllers used in computer monitors and TVs make up a big chunk of the MStar's sales," said David Liu (
Liu said local chipmakers should brace for more patent disputes as larger international rivals use legal means to thwart Taiwanese startups, which are generally more cost-competitive.
Five months before the ITC's ruling, Media Reality applied to terminate share trading on Taiwan's emerging-market bourse in March, as it was unable to sustain huge losses from law suits with Genesis. Trumpion Microelectronics also decided to phase out production of its LCD controllers as a result of legal pressure.
As of press time, Media Reality and Trumpion Microelectronics could not be reached for comment about the ruling.
"We are delighted with the ITC's decision to uphold the findings of the administrative law judge," Eric Erdman, an interim chief executive officer at Genesis Microchip, said in a statement yesterday.
Genesis Microchip shares rose US$0.63 to US$12.58 at 5:20pm on the NASDAQ share market. The shares have fallen 30 percent in the past 12 months.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump weighed in on a pressing national issue: The rebranding of a restaurant chain. Last week, Cracker Barrel, a Tennessee company whose nationwide locations lean heavily on a cozy, old-timey aesthetic — “rocking chairs on the porch, a warm fire in the hearth, peg games on the table” — announced it was updating its logo. Uncle Herschel, the man who once appeared next to the letters with a barrel, was gone. It sparked ire on the right, with Donald Trump Jr leading a charge against the rebranding: “WTF is wrong with Cracker Barrel?!” Later, Trump Sr weighed
SinoPac Financial Holdings Co (永豐金控) is weighing whether to add a life insurance business to its portfolio, but would tread cautiously after completing three acquisitions in quick succession, president Stanley Chu (朱士廷) said yesterday. “We are carefully considering whether life insurance should play a role in SinoPac’s business map,” Chu told reporters ahead of an earnings conference. “Our priority is to ensure the success of the deals we have already made, even though we are tracking some possible targets.” Local media have reported that Mercuries Life Insurance Co (三商美邦人壽), which is seeking buyers amid financial strains, has invited three financial
Artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Cambricon Technologies Corp (寒武紀科技) plunged almost 9 percent after warning investors about a doubling in its share price over just a month, a record gain that helped fuel a US$1 trillion Chinese market rally. Cambricon triggered the selloff with a Thursday filing in which it dispelled talk about nonexistent products in the pipeline, reminded investors it labors under US sanctions, and stressed the difficulties of ascending the technology ladder. The Shanghai-listed company’s stock dived by the most since April in early yesterday trading, while the market stood largely unchanged. The litany of warnings underscores growing scrutiny of
OUTLOOK: Among the six sub-indices, only the stock market confidence sub-index rose due to strong equity performance and expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate cut Consumer confidence weakened further this month, sliding to its lowest level in two-and-a-half years as households grew increasingly uneasy about the economic outlook, job security and big-ticket spending, a survey by the National Central University showed yesterday. The consumer confidence index fell 1.07 points from last month to 63.31, the weakest number since May 2023, said the university’s Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development (RCTED), which conducts the monthly poll. “Although the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics recently increased Taiwan’s GDP growth forecast for this year to 4.45 percent, consumer sentiment tells a different story,” RCTED director Dachrahn Wu
RSS