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`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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`_______________
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`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
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`_______________
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`TCL MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, LTD.
`and
`TTE TECHNOLOGY, INC.,
`Petitioners,
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`v.
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`NICHIA CORPORATION,
`Patent Owner.
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`_______________
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`Case IPR2017-02000
`Patent No. 7,915,631 B2
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`_______________
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`JOINT MOTION TO TERMINATE PROCEEDING
`PURSUANT TO 35 U.S.C. § 317
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`Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 317(b) and 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c), Patent Owner
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`Nichia Corporation (“Patent Owner”) and Petitioners TCL Multimedia Technology
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`Holdings, Ltd. and TTE Technology, Inc. (“Petitioners”) jointly move the Patent
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`Trial and Appeal Board (“Board”) to terminate the following inter partes review
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`proceeding in its entirety:
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`IPR Case No.
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`IPR2017-02000
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`Patent No.
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`7,915,631
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`The parties notified the Board of the parties’ settlement by email
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`correspondence dated February 22, 2018, and received authorization to file this
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`Motion to Terminate by order dated February 26, 2018. Pap. 8. In support of the
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`Motion to Terminate Proceeding, the parties state as follows:
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`Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 317(b) and 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(b), Petitioner and
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`Patent Owner have separately filed herewith a true copy (including counterparts) of
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`the confidential settlement agreement and the purchase agreement. Because the
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`settlement agreement and purchase agreement are confidential, the parties
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`respectfully request that they be treated as business confidential information, be
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`kept separate from the underlying patent file, and be made available only as
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`provided in 35 U.S.C. § 317(b) and 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c), and have filed herewith a
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`separate paper setting forth this request.
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`1
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`The statutory provision on a settlement relating to inter partes reviews
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`provides that an inter partes review “shall be terminated with respect to any
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`petitioner upon the joint request of the petitioner and the patent owner, unless the
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`Office has decided the merits of the proceeding before the request for termination
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`is filed.” 35 U.S.C. § 317. It also provides that, “[i]f no petitioner remains in the
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`inter partes review, the Office may terminate the review or proceed to a final
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`written decision under section 318(a).” Id.
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`This proceeding is in the preliminary stage. This inter partes review has not
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`been instituted. Petitioner filed its petition for inter partes review on August 25,
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`2017, and Patent Owner filed a preliminary response on February 9, 2018. The
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`parties have settled their dispute and have agreed to file a stipulated dismissal in
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`the district court litigation in which U.S. Patent No. 7,915,631 had been asserted
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`(Case No. 1:16-cv-00681 (RGA) (D. Del.)). The parties also agreed to terminate
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`this inter partes review as well as other inter partes review proceedings concerning
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`related patents that had been asserted in that litigation, namely IPR2017-
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`01998, -01999, -02001, and are simultaneously filing corresponding motions in
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`those proceedings.1
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`1 Patent Owner notes that an IPR petition filed by different petitioners challenging
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`claims of U.S. Patent No. 7,15,631 is still pending. See Lowe’s Companies, Inc. et
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`2
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`As noted above, the parties’ settlement agreement and purchase agreement
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`have been made in writing, and true and correct copies shall be filed with this
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`Office as business confidential information pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 317(b).
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`Because the Board has not decided the merits of this inter partes review
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`proceeding, Section 317 provides that the proceeding should be terminated with
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`respect to Petitioners. Moreover, because TCL Multimedia Technology Holdings,
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`Ltd. and TTE Technology, Inc. are the only petitioners in the proceeding, once the
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`proceeding is terminated with respect them, no petitioner will remain in the inter
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`partes review, and the Office may terminate the review in its entirety under
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`Section 317. Patent Owner and Petitioners jointly submit that the Board should do
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`so.
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`Because this proceeding has not yet been instituted and Patent Owner only
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`just filed its preliminary response on February 9, 2018, termination would save
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`significant expenditure of resources by the Board and would further the purpose of
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`IPR proceedings to provide an efficient and less costly alternative forum for patent
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`disputes (including by encouraging settlement). The Board has routinely
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`terminated proceedings at the request of settling parties in cases that have
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`progressed much further than the present proceeding, see, e.g., Apex Medical Corp.
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`al. v. Nichia Corporation, IPR2018-00066. Patent Owner filed its preliminary
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`response to that petition on January 26, 2018.
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`3
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`v. Resmed Ltd., IPR2013-00512, Pap. 39, at 24 (Sept. 12, 2014) (granting motion
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`to terminate in its entirety notwithstanding that instituted proceeding was fully
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`briefed); Volusion, Inc. v. Versata Software, Inc., CBM2013-00018, Pap. 52, at 2
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`(June 17, 2014) (granting motion to terminate instituted proceeding in its entirety
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`after final oral hearing); see also ARM, Ltd. v. Godo Kaisha IP Bridge 1, IPR2017-
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`00527, Pap. 10, at 2-3 (May 12, 2017) (granting motion to terminate in its entirety
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`after preliminary response but prior to institution). The parties respectfully request
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`that the Board terminate this inter partes review proceeding in its entirety. Indeed,
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`the Board has stated an expectation that proceedings such as this one will be
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`terminated after the filing of a settlement agreement: “[t]here are strong public
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`policy reasons to favor settlement between the parties to a proceeding . . . . The
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`Board expects that a proceeding will terminate after the filing of a settlement
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`agreement, unless the Board has already decided the merits of the proceeding. 35
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`U.S.C. § 317(a), as amended. . . .” Office Patent Trial Practice Guide, 77 Fed.
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`Reg. 48756, 48768 (Aug. 14, 2012) (emphasis added). For at least the reasons
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`noted above, the Board’s expectation that such proceedings should be terminated is
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`proper and well justified here.
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`III. CONCLUSION
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`Wherefore, Patent Owner and Petitioners respectfully request that the Board
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`grant the parties’ Joint Motion to Terminate Case Number IPR2017-02000 in its
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`4
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`entirety and grant the request to treat the settlement agreement and the purchase
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`agreement between the parties as business confidential information.
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`Petitioner and Patent Owner are available at the Board’s convenience to
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`discuss these related matters in more detail or answer any additional questions
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`Respectfully submitted,
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`/s/James M. Glass
`James M. Glass, Reg. No. 46729
`QUINN EMANUEL URQUHART
` & SULLIVAN, LLP
`51 Madison Avenue, 22nd Floor
`New York, NY 10010
`Tel: (212) 849-7000
`Fax: (212) 849-7100
`jimglass@quinnemanuel.com
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`Counsel for Petitioners TCL
`Multimedia Technology Holdings,
`Ltd. and TTE Technology, Inc.
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`raised by this joint motion.
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`/s/ David E. Cole
`David E. Cole, Reg. No. 73,084
`PAUL, WEISS, RIFKIND,
`WHARTON & GARRISON LLP
`2001 K Street, NW
`Washington, DC 20006-1047
`Tel.: (202) 223-7300
`Fax: (202) 223-7420
`dcole@paulweiss.com
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`Counsel for Patent Owner Nichia
`Corporation
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`Dated: February 27, 2018
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`5
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`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
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`Pursuant to 37 C.F.R. § 42.6(e), I certify that, on February 27, 2018, I
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`caused a true and correct copy of the foregoing JOINT MOTION TO
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`TERMINATE PROCEEDING PURSUANT TO 35 U.S.C. § 317 to be served by
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`email and electronic transfer on the following counsel of record for Petitioners
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`TCL Multimedia Technology Holdings Ltd. and TTE Technology, Inc.:
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`James M. Glass, Esq.
`Raymond N. Nimrod, Esq.
`QUINN EMANUEL URQUHART & SULLIVAN, LLP
`51 Madison Avenue, 22nd Floor
`New York, NY 10010
`jimglass@quinnemanuel.com
`raynimrod@quinnemanuel.com
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`/s/ David E. Cole
`David E. Cole (Reg. No. 73,084)
`PAUL, WEISS, RIFKIND,
`WHARTON & GARRISON LLP
`2001 K Street, NW
`Washington, DC 20006-1047
`Tel.: (202) 223-7300
`Fax: (202) 223-7420
`dcole@paulweiss.com
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`Counsel for Patent Owner
`Nichia Corporation
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`6
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