Vizio and amd in legal fight for television graphics patents

AMD's legal bombardment of television manufacturers for their patents is causing a stir. According to the US International Trade Commission, Vizio and chip provider Sigma Designs violated an AMD patent that deals with graphics technologies for TV. The Commission has ordered Vizio and Sigma to "cease and desist" from making products that violate the patent, and has prohibited them from importing any existing products.

Vizio and chip provider Sigma Designs violated an AMD patent

The import ban is unlikely to affect Vizio's latest products. Sigma, apparently, is in full liquidation, so any affected television would have been sold. However, ITC has not named the exact models, raising the possibility that some models that violate the patent may still be in stock. Unlike patent lawsuits that can last for years, ITC cases tend to move much faster.

This is not AMD's first lawsuit in this regard, previously it was LG that was charged, but on that occasion, LG reached an out-of-court settlement to avoid the lawsuit. This latest move might not necessarily be Vizio's case for him to pay, but he could feel the pressure of reaching an agreement to avoid problems in the future, and serious problems with multi-million dollar figures.

We will be aware of how this case evolves and how it will affect the Vizio televisions that are for sale. Will they be forced to withdraw them? What will happen to the warranty of many of the affected models?

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