Cree, rival LED producer strike patent sharing agreement; analyst firm calls Cree a 'buy'

Light-emitting diode manufacturer Cree (Nasdaq: CREE) and Toyoda Gosei, a rival manufacturer, have struck an agreement covering patent-sharing and other product technology.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

In other news Wednesday, analyst firm Kaufman Brothers initiated coverage of Cree with a "buy" rating.

The agreement provides both firms with "access to each other's patented LED chip and packaged LED technology,” Cree said in a statement.

In March, Toyoda Gosei reached a patent-licensing agreement with Gertrude Neumark Rothschild, professor emerita of materials science and engineering at Columbia University. Several other firms, including Sony Corp and Sanyo Electric Co Ltd, reached an agreement with Rothschild on Tuesday, according to the publication Semiconductor Today.

Cree has not settled its dispute with Rothschild, Semiconductor Today added.

In a lawsuit, Rothschild alleged infringement by 31 firms of a patent covering LED technology.

Toyoda Gosei operates facilities in several different countries.

"Cree and Toyoda Gosei are responsible companies that respect the intellectual property rights of others and strive to enhance the development of LED technology," said Chris James, Cree's vice president of marketing and business development, in a statement. "The agreement highlights the importance of intellectual property in the LED marketplace and helps to alleviate the [intellectual property] concerns of LED customers."

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