SUFFERN, NY, April 20, 2001 - Creative Labs, Inc., Milpitas, California, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Creative Technology, Ltd. (Nasdaq: CREAF), has been named in a patent infringement law suit by Acticon Technologies LLC (Acticon), a wholly owned subsidiary of General Patent Corporation (GPC). The suit seeks to enforce three of Acticon's patents that cover specific aspects of PC Card modems, the PCMCIA credit-card-sized modems used in notebook and laptop personal computers. The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
"Creative Labs was notified of the infringement in March of 2000," said Paul Lerner, GPC's general counsel and senior vice president. "Litigation is always the last option for us," said Mr. Lerner. "However, we feel that we have exhausted our earnest efforts to resolve this matter and must proceed resolutely with the law suit in order to enforce our proprietary rights."
GPC has successfully enforced these patents on behalf of its subsidiary, Acticon, through litigation in six separate courts. The defendants in these litigations included IBM, Smart Modular Technologies, Motorola, U.S. Robotics Corp. (now 3Com), Boca Research, and many other companies. All of the defendants in these litigations have taken a license under the patents.
GPC's licensing and enforcement efforts have resulted in the acceptance of these patents by more than 85% of the PC Card industry.
About Acticon Technologies
Acticon Technologies LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Patent Corporation, is an IP company based in Suffern, NY. Acticon's award-winning smart connector technology is based on U.S. Patent Nos. 4,603,320 ("Connector Interface"), 4,686,506 ("Multiple Connector Interface"), 4,972,470 ("Programmable Connector") and 4,543,450 ("Integrated Connector and Modem"). Acticon Technologies offers non-exclusive licenses under these patents on attractive terms. For licensing terms contact Paul Lerner at (845) 368-4000 x104.