Broadcom Will Pursue Injunction Against Qualcomm

A U.S. federal court ruling has cleared the way for wireless chip maker Broadcom to pursue an injunction against rival Qualcomm after a long-running patent dispute.

On Wednesday, Judge James V. Selna of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California finalized a federal jury's conclusion in May that Qualcomm willfully infringed on three of Broadcom's cellular phone baseband patents.

Broadcom will be awarded $19.6 million in compensatory damages. The company said on Friday it will now pursue an injunction to stop Qualcomm from making 3G (third generation) and EVDO (Evolution Data only) cellular chips that infringe on the patents.

Selma originally doubled the damages in light of another court ruling, but later overturned it after a change in federal law. Broadcom could have requested a new trial that would have determined the extent to which Qualcomm willfully infringed, but the company has declined.

Broadcom attorney David Rosmann said last month that obtaining an injunction was more important than damages.

The suit is one of several between Qualcomm and Broadcom, who are battling over the market for mobile-phone chips.