COMAG Sued for Infringement of MPEG-2 Patents

DENVER, CO, US – 9 June 2008 – MPEG LA, LLC, world leader in alternative one-stop patent licenses, today announced that several leading companies have filed separate patent enforcement actions in District Court Dusseldorf, Germany against COMAG Handels AG (“COMAG”), for infringing patents essential to the MPEG-2 digital video compression standard used worldwide in digital television broadcasting and DVD.

Included among the plaintiffs are: CIF Licensing, LLC; GE Technology Development, Inc.; Mitsubishi Denki K.K.; Koninklijke Philips Electronics, N.V; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Sony Corporation; Thomson Licensing S.A.; and Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (JVC).

According to the complaints, COMAG offers in Germany products, such as digital set-top boxes, which use patent protected MPEG-2 methods without having entered into licenses with the individual patent holders or a portfolio license that includes these patents offered by MPEG LA.

The suit seeks, among other things, monetary damages and an injunction prohibiting COMAG from using MPEG-2 patents in its products and from offering, marketing, or importing them.

MPEG LA, LLC

MPEG LA is the world leader in alternative technology licenses, enabling users to acquire worldwide patent rights necessary for a technology standard or platform from multiple patent holders in a single transaction as an alternative to negotiating separate licenses. Wherever an independently administered one-stop patent license would provide a convenient marketplace alternative to assist users with implementation of their technology choices, the licensing model pioneered and employed by MPEG LA may provide a solution. Among MPEG LA’s licenses is one for MPEG-2 digital video compression that has helped produce the most widely employed standard in consumer electronics history. The MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License, which includes more than 825 MPEG-2 essential patents in 57 countries, has approximately 1300 licensees accounting for most MPEG-2 products including set-top boxes, DVD players, digital television sets, personal computers and DVD Video Discs in the current world market. MPEG LA is an independent licensing administrator; it is not related to any standards agency and is not an affiliate of any patent holder. For more information, please refer to http://www.mpegla.com.