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Technology Stocks : Broadcom (BRCM) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ingenious who wrote (4205)	8/31/2000 3:52:07 PM
From: Roger Hess	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6531

A couple of questions/thoughts: 1) Has Intel invested in BRCM, as in part ownership? If so, aren't they basically 'suing themselves'? As the value of BRCM goes up, so does the value of Intel's investment in BRCM. Plus, being a part owner, Intel should be able to swing some strategic agreements with BRCM. Sort of makes me think of a story I heard one time about a doctor who was sued by a patient who was also a friend. The friend/patient said to not take it personally, that they were just doing it for the money. 2) Perhaps Intel sees an erosion of key employees to BRCM and wants to stop any in the future by suing BRCM. Picture employees who have been at Intel for awhile and who have made a ton of $$$, then wanting to go to Broadcom and make a ton of $$$.

To: Ingenious who wrote (4205)	8/31/2000 7:08:48 PM
From: Art Bechhoefer	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6531

This is not a straight patent infringement suit, but has grown out of a prior accusation of stealing trade secrets from Intel by hiring, or making promises to hire Intel employees. Intel already has offered enough evidence for the court to grant an injunction against BRCM, preventing them from using trade secrets in any of their products. So don't go counting the chickens before they've hatched. You say that Intel always sues when they think the opponents are getting too close for comfort (in terms of using proprietary technology). Well, this is standard procedure for many companies, not just Intel. You can't take any patent suit for granted these days. Maybe BRCM is similar to AMD, and maybe not. These subjects get highly technical, and I don't see how anyone on the outside, unless the person is very knowledgeable about the technology, can speculate at this point. All I would point out is that Intel did get an injunction against the very practices they say have led to a patent infringement. They're legal action is not without some foundation, apparently.