Nanoco Group has agreed a $150m litigation settlement with Samsung.
It was announced earlier this month that the Manchester firm had reached a “no fault’ settlement in a long running patent dispute with the tech giant just hours before they were due to meet in court.
The $150m cash sum for the alleged infringement of its IP will be paid in 2 equal parts by 5th March this year and 3rd February 2024.
Nanoco will retain more than $90m of this, following costs.
The deal also means the developer of nano materials for electronics will have “full freedom to operate in all markets, territories, products and material types.” It’s an outcome the company called “transformative.”
“This has been a long and hard battle for Nanoco. The outcome is remarkable, given the relative scale of Nanoco and Samsung,” said Chris Richards, Chairman of Nanoco Group plc.
“The settlement value is almost three times our own low case damages model; settling now avoids the risks associated with further litigation and the adverse impact from the time value of money in an appeals process that would have extended for years. Even more importantly, it validates Nanoco’s core IP, which we will continue to defend vigorously.
“In deciding the allocation of the net proceeds, the Board will balance any investment needs of Nanoco’s growing organic business with a firm intention to deliver a material return of capital to shareholders.”
Brian Tenner, Chief Executive Officer of Nanoco Group added:
“Today marks the start of a new chapter for Nanoco. We have successfully validated our core IP against one of the world’s biggest electronics companies, who were advised by one of the most expensive law firms in the world. Others operating in our space should take note.
“We therefore remain vigilant to other potential infringement activity, as well as opportunities to pro-actively deliver new licence agreements. The confirmation of the validity of our IP is already encouraging more commercial interest in Nanoco as a supplier of leading edge nano-materials.
“We have also generated a transformational amount of value for our stakeholders, whilst providing the funding for investment in the business. We have done this while transforming Nanoco and positioning ourselves for significant organic growth in the near term. Most importantly, we have a foundation on which to focus on the organic business as we continue to build on the significant positive momentum achieved in the last few years.”
