Microtune, Inc., Plano, Texas, won a major victory when Judge Sidney Harris of the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issued on April 2, 2004, his initial determination that Microtune did not violate Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930. Broadcom alleged that Microtune violated Section 337 on the basis that Microtune imported single-chip tuners and amplifiers that infringed one claim of Broadcom's 6,445,039 patent. After a full hearing on the merits, the ITC Administrative Law Judge issued his conclusions that there was no violation of Section 337 and that the Broadcom patent was invalid on numerous grounds, making the issue of infringement irrelevant.

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"We believed the Broadcom patent to be invalid. We feel vindicated in defending our single-chip tuner technology, which we pioneered and patented," said James A. Fontaine, Microtune's CEO and president. "We believe that we have and continue to develop superior radio frequency technology as evidenced by our new 1-Gigahertz MicroTuner MT 2121. It is the only silicon tuner capable of meeting both the analog and digital requirements of the demanding U.S. cable marketplace and of the television industry's 'Plug and Play' digital television initiatives."

The ITC's order marks another milestone in Microtune's successful patent litigation involving Broadcom Corporation, according to the company press release. Microtune has sued Broadcom once for patent infringement. Early last year, a jury found that Broadcom willfully infringed Microtune's patent, U.S. Patent No. 5,737,035, and later the court issued a permanent injunction. Broadcom later sued Microtune for infringement of Broadcom's U.S. patent 6,337,315, but then withdrew that suit. This is the third case between the parties, and three others are pending.

Broadcom may now petition the ITC to review the initial determination on limited grounds. The ITC's final determination will be released by July 2, 2004.