Microsemi
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Intellectual Ventures begins tech patent offensive, files three lawsuits against nine companies
We've always wondered why former Microsoft CTO Nathan Mhyrvold was stockpiling patents at his new company Intellectual Ventures, and it looks like we're starting to find out why: in addition to licensing the entire portfolio to HTC and Samsung, IV's just filed its first three patent lawsuits against nine tech companies. Details are sparse, but the first suit is against Symantec, McAfeee, Trend Micro, and Check Point Software, the second names Elpida Memory and Hynix, and the third is against Altera, Lattice Semiconductor, and Microsemi. We'd assume the patents in question are all super-technical in nature, but it's really not the specifics we're interested in -- it's more the fact that IV is starting to flex some muscle in the tech world, and that means a lot of money could change hands real fast. We'll see what happens.
Microsemi's DAZL! technology aids in LED-based LCD production
Although the rollout of LED-backlit LCDs is still in the early stages, Microsemi is banking on its latest breakthrough to provide "system-level solutions that accelerate the design of advanced LED-based backlighting for large screen LCD televisions." Dubbed DAZL! (Digital Advanced Zone Lighting), the chipsets reportedly produce unprecedented "uniformity of color, brightness, contrast, blur-free performance, and energy savings," and moreover, they reduce the number of components needed to build LED backlights. Currently, the firm is already testing the waters by sampling flat-panel manufacturers who supposedly plan on implementing its technology in their next-generation sets, so we'll just hold tight 'til 2008 and see exactly how dazzled we really are.
