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Kodak, LG Enter Cross-licensing Agreement
05 December 2012
Eastman Kodak has reached an cross-licensing agreement with LG Electronics that will give each company “broad access” to the other’s patent portfolio, according to a statement issued by the Rochester, New York-based company.
The license agreement, which provides significant benefits to both companies, is royalty-bearing to Kodak. Additional financial details were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to have reached a mutually beneficial arrangement that advances the interests of Kodak and LG and validates the strength of Kodak’s intellectual property portfolio,” said Laura G Quatela, chief intellectual property officer and vice president of Eastman Kodak.
Kodak also announced that it will sell substantially all the assets associated with its organic light-emitting diode business to a group of LG companies. This move will tighten Kodak’s investment focus and strengthen its financial position. Financial details were not disclosed. In the 1970s, Kodak scientists developed the world's first viable OLED material.
Kodak will have continuing access to its OLED technology for use in its products. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the year.
The companies also agreed to conclude their patent litigation, which involved a subset of their imaging technologies. Pursuant to a settlement agreement, Kodak and LG will request that the US International Trade Commission terminate the investigations initiated earlier this year following complaints filed by both companies in late 2008.
