Inventor Dr. Brent Townshend Reacquires Ownership of High-Speed Modem
Patents From 3Com Corporation
MENLO PARK and SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 24, 1999--3Com
Corporation (Nasdaq:COMS) and Dr. Brent Townshend today announced that Dr.
Townshend has reacquired from 3Com control of the patents covering his inventions that
made 56K modems feasible.
Dr. Townshend's patents are basic to the pulse code modulation technology embodied in V.90
compatible and proprietary 56K modems. Previously, 3Com held an exclusive license and
option to acquire ownership of Dr. Townshend's patents.
Under the new arrangement, Dr. Townshend reacquired exclusive control over the licensing
and enforcement of the patents as well as other ownership rights, while 3Com retained a
non-exclusive license to practice the Townshend inventions.
"Dr. Townshend's pioneering work is basic to the technology that made the V.90 standard
and 56Kbps modems possible. His inventions dramatically altered the landscape of modem
communications and analog modem connection speeds," said Robert C. Suffern, Vice
President of Research & Development in the Personal Communications Division at 3Com.
As a condition of the transaction, Dr. Townshend affirmed his earlier commitment to negotiate
licenses under patents covering the V.90 standard on a non-discriminatory basis under
reasonable terms and conditions. Specific license terms for the Townshend patents are
available upon request.
3Com also owns exclusive rights to other inventions that it believes are essential for
compliance with the V.90 modem standard. Patents covering these technologies have either
issued or are expected to issue shortly. As a participant in the ITU work leading to the
adoption of the V.90 standard, 3Com confirmed its willingness to negotiate on a
non-discriminatory basis and to grant licenses under these patents on reasonable terms and
conditions.
About Dr. Brent Townshend
Dr. Townshend is an independent inventor in Menlo Park, California. He is also a Consulting
Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering at Stanford University and is a founder of
Ordinate Corporation.
About 3Com Corporation
With more than 200 million customers worldwide, 3Com Corporation connects more people
to information in more ways than any other networking company. 3Com delivers innovative
information access products and network system solutions to large, medium and small
enterprises; carriers and network service providers; PC OEMs; and consumers. 3Com -- More
connected.(TM) For further information, visit 3Com's World Wide Web site at
www.3Com.com or the press site at www.3com.com/pressbox.
Note to Editors: 3Com is a registered trademark and More connected. is a trademark of 3Com
Corporation. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective
companies with which they are associated.
CONTACT: 3Com Public Relations
Craig Grabiner, 847/262-2329
craig_grabiner@3com.com
or
Brent Townshend PR
Dave & Bairey Comm.
John Pinson, 415/883-7402
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