Hurco Announces Okuma, Yaskawa And NUM Agreements
PR Newswire - February 17, 1998 08:20
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INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Hurco Companies, Inc.
(Nasdaq: HURC), a leading producer of computer numerical control (CNC) systems, today announced that its subsidiary, IMS Technology, Inc., has entered into agreements for the licensing of its interactive CNC patents to several major Japanese and French manufacturers in exchange for substantial lump sum cash payments. These agreements were entered into in settlement of patent infringement claims brought by IMS against the licensees.
Licenses were granted to Okuma Manufacturing Works, Ltd., Yaskawa Electric Corp., Schneider Electric SA and its affiliate NUM SA, that together provide for aggregate cash fees, net of foreign taxes, of approximately $2.5 million.
In addition to a cash payment, the agreement with one of the licensees, a supplier to Hurco, also provides for approximately $620,000 of discounts on future purchases by Hurco. The latest agreements, together with prior agreements, are expected to result in licensing fee income, net of expenses and foreign taxes, of approximately $1.4 million in Hurco's first fiscal quarter, which ended January 31, 1998, and $1.1 million in the second quarter,
which will end April 30, 1998.
IMS began pursuing alleged infringers of its CNC patents in October 1995 and to date has realized aggregate license fees of approximately $24.0 million as a result of that effort. Infringement litigation against several major industrial companies, including Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, is continuing.
Hurco Companies, Inc. is one of the largest producers of computer
numerical control systems designed and built in the United States for stand- alone machine tools. The end market for the Company's products consists primarily of independent job shops and short-run manufacturing operations within large corporations in industries such as the aerospace, defense, medical equipment, energy, transportation and computer equipment. The Company is based in Indianapolis, Ind., has additional production facilities in Farmington Hills, Mich., and has sales, application engineering and service subsidiaries in High Wycombe, England; Munich, Germany, Paris, France and Singapore. Products are sold through independent agents and distributors in
the United States, Europe and Asia. The Company also has direct sales forces in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Asia.
SOURCE Hurco Companies, Inc.
/CONTACT: Roger Wolf, Senior Vice President, CFO of Hurco Companies,Inc., 317-293-5309; or Tony Ebersole, general, 312-640-6728, are@chi.frbd.com, Bill Schmidle, analysts, 312-640-6753, wgs@chi.frbd.com, or Margie Baigh, media, 312-640-6727, mbb@chi.frbd.com, all of the Financial Relations Board/ (HURC) |
