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Technology Stocks : WDC/Sandisk Corporation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Steve 667 who wrote (14730)	9/11/2000 4:54:07 PM
From: Ausdauer	Respond to of 60323

Steve, Toshiba and SmartMedia "Do patents apply to the manufacture or to the sale of the device that is patented?" I assume the manufacturer bears the risk here. That is, if Lexar actually has a claim at all. I am not saying that they do or do not. I think SanDisk is viewed as a reseller of SmartMedia. It is not of SanDisk origin. It is private labelled as SanDisk's. I don't believe SanDisk modifies the guts. The only modification appears to be with a label. I assume the product comes whole, completely assembled and ready for retail packaging. I don't believe SanDisk manufactures SmartMedia. This situation may change one FlashVision is created. In any case I would believe that Toshiba would still get the lion's share of the profits as SmartMedia is a Toshiba invention. If there was a patent issue then SanDisk could elect to use 100% of its FlashVision output for CF, MMC and SDMC. I doubt that SanDisk is enthusiastic about supporting the SmartMedia standard as it competes directly with CF and MMC. That is my general impression. You may wish to draw your own conclusion. Please read through the 1999 SanDisk annual report. No pictures of SmartMedia there. No reference to SmartMedia revenues there. Actually SmartMedia is listed as a competing standard promoted by Toshiba. Again, I think Lexar is all sizzle and no steak in this instance. Also, re-read the SanDisk retort for reassurance. Ausdauer

To: Steve 667 who wrote (14730)	9/11/2000 5:24:44 PM
From: Ausdauer	Respond to of 60323

How about some equal time??? PATENT LAWSUIT BACKLASH HURTS CONSUMERS siliconinvestor.com SanDisk Corp., Sunnyvale, Calif., filed a series of lawsuits in the late 1990s that forced rivals to agree to license its flash-memory patents, while Rambus Inc., Mountain View, Calif., recently sued those companies that refuse to license its synchronous chip-interface technology. TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE... In the late 1990's SanDisk almost evaporated from the face of the planet. Give me a break. Aus