United States Patent Office Reaffirms the Validity of Important QUALCOMM CDMA Patent
Tuesday March 23, 7:31 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: QUALCOMM Incorporated
SAN DIEGO, March 23 /PRNewswire/ -- QUALCOMM Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM -
news) today announced that the validity of one of its key Code Division Multiple Access
(CDMA) patents has been reaffirmed. QUALCOMM has received notice that the United States
Patent and Trademark Office will issue a Reexamination Certificate confirming the patentability of
all 49 claims of U.S. Patent 5,103,459 with minor amendments and allowing 19 additional
claims. The patent, which was issued in April 1992, had been the subject of two requests for
reexamination filed by anonymous requestors in 1996 and 1997. The requests for reexamination
alleged that prior publications not originally considered by the Patent Office rendered the patent
invalid. In total, more than 80 additional references were submitted to the Patent Office during
the reexamination proceedings by the requestors and QUALCOMM. The Patent Office, after
carefully reviewing all the additional prior art, concluded that the patent was valid and that
QUALCOMM was also entitled to 19 new claims.
The '459 Patent, entitled ''System and Method for Generating Signal Waveforms in a CDMA
Cellular Telephone System,'' describes inventions for generating the basic CDMA waveforms
used in CDMA wireless systems such as IS-95 and others. The same basic waveforms are also
utilized in CDMA systems proposed for third-generation standards. The inventions of the '459
Patent enable multiple callers in a CDMA wireless telecommunications network to efficiently use
the same frequency band without mutual interference, allowing for greater system capacity and
better link performance.
QUALCOMM's pioneering efforts in the development of CDMA cellular technology have
yielded more than 200 issued U.S. patents relating to CDMA and hundreds of issued and
pending CDMA patent applications around the world. While no single patent is critical to
QUALCOMM's coverage of second or third generation CDMA wireless standards because
QUALCOMM holds dozens of patents that are essential to the leading standards, the '459
Patent covers fundamental techniques for achieving high capacity in such CDMA systems. More
than 60 major manufacturers of telecommunications equipment have taken royalty-bearing
licenses under QUALCOMM's patent portfolio.
QUALCOMM Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM - news) is a leader in developing and delivering
innovative digital wireless communications products and services based on the Company's
CDMA digital technology. The Company's major business areas include CDMA phones;
integrated CDMA chipsets and system software; wireless infrastructure; technology licensing;
and satellite-based systems including OmniTRACS® and portions of the Globalstar(TM) system.
QUALCOMM is headquartered in San Diego, Calif. QUALCOMM's fiscal 1998 revenues
exceeded U.S. $3 billion. For more information, please visit the Company's web site at
qualcomm.com.
Except for the historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking
statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, including timely product development, the
Company's ability to successfully manufacture significant quantities of CDMA or other equipment
on a timely and profitable basis, and those related to performance guarantees, change in
economic conditions of the various markets the Company serves, as well as the other risks
detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-K for
the year ended September 27, 1998, and most recent Form 10-Q.
QUALCOMM and OmniTRACS are registered trademarks of QUALCOMM Incorporated.
Globalstar is a trademark of Loral QUALCOMM Satellite Services, Incorporated.
SOURCE: QUALCOMM Incorporated
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