Micron is the largest US maker of computer-memory chips. Credit: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Chipmaker Micron Technology will pay semiconductor company Netlist $445m in damages for violating its patent rights in memory-module technology for high-performance computing, a US jury said on Thursday (23 May).

Jurors in the US found that Micron’s semiconductor-memory products infringe two Netlist patents related to technology for improving the performance of memory modules. 

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“We are grateful for the jury’s service, and their recognition of the importance of Netlist’s innovation,” Netlist attorney Jason Sheasby said in a statement.

The jury also found that Micron infringed the company’s patents willfully. This could mean a judge may multiply the damages up to three times. 

The news comes after Netlist won a $303m verdict against Samsung in a similar patent dispute in April 2023.

In November, a lawsuit was filed against Micron by Chinese chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) over an alleged infringement of eight of its patents.

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The lawsuit from YMTC was filed in early November and alleges Micron used YMTC’s patented technology to protect market share and fight off competition from the Chinese company.

YMTC also alleges that Micron did not pay its fair share to use the patented tech. 

In a statement to Reuters, YMTC said that it was unable to discuss the specifics of pending litigation but confirmed the lawsuit has been filed for “infringement of our company’s patents related to the design, manufacture, and operation of 3D NAND technology”.

“We are confident that this matter will be resolved swiftly,” the statement added.

While the semiconductor industry is nascent due to emerging AI technologies, GlobalData forecasts that its market worth will exceed $130bn worldwide by 2030.