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To: Carl R. who wrote (46166)	6/8/1999 1:53:00 AM
From: DJBEINO	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 53903

.S. to Investigate NEC for Possible Violations of Chip Patents Washington, June 7 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government will investigate whether NEC Corp., Japan's biggest maker of microchips and personal computers, violated U.S. trade laws by infringing on patents held by a small U.S. manufacturer of memory chip devices. Enhanced Memory Systems Inc., a 35-person subsidiary of Colorado Springs-based Ramtron International Corp., filed a complaint in April with the U.S. International Trade Commission alleging NEC and its U.S. units infringed on patents for EMS's only two products. Both products improve the speed of dynamic random-access memory chips, or DRAMs, basic memory chips used in many electronic devices, from personal computers to cellular phones. The ITC's decision to investigate is the latest victory by U.S. chipmakers against foreign competitors. Two weeks ago Micron Technology Inc. of Idaho won a dispute against 11 Taiwanese companies, which it accused of ''dumping'' DRAMs, or selling them below production cost in the U.S. The U.S. Commerce Department authorized tariffs of up to 31 percent on the chips. The ITC ''analyzed the claims that we've made and feel that it's serious enough to investigate further,'' said David Bondurant, an EMS spokesman. The ITC is an autonomous U.S. agency that gauges the impact of trade on domestic industries. Block Sale The U.S. could block the sale of the NEC chips designed with EMS technology if the ITC finds the Japanese manufacturer infringed on the EMS patent rights. EMS also requested the NEC devices be blocked from the U.S. while the investigation takes place. The ITC, which will take about a year to complete its investigation, will rule on that request within 90 days. NEC officials declined to comment. NEC's U.S. subsidiaries - - NEC Electronics Inc. of California and NEC USA Inc. of New York -- will also be investigated. NEC said last month it will more than double production of DRAMs by the middle of next year, stepping up output at its plants in Hiroshima and in Scotland. EMS, which began selling the devices worldwide in 1992, sold $15 million of the devices last year. EMS also filed a complaint last October in U.S. District Court in San Francisco alleging NEC violated its patent rights. Bondurant would not comment on that case, calling it ''ongoing.''