Irvine-based chipmaker Broadcom Corp. recently settled a long-running legal battle over patents for global positioning system chips with Britain’s CSR PLC.
The case stretches back to a claim filed five years ago, when Broadcom alleged that San Jose-based Sirf Technology Holdings Inc. infringed on its patents for GPS navigation chips for cell phones.
Sirf was acquired by CSR for $136 million in 2009.
Broadcom and CSR “have agreed to settle all litigation and legal proceedings between the parties and their affiliates,” the company said.
Both companies agreed “not to pursue further infringement actions against each other” for five years, Broadcom said in a statement.
Other terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed.
The settlement ends a lawsuit that started in late 2006, when Sirf sued Global Locate Inc. over GPS technology patents. Broadcom got involved when it bought Global Locate in 2007.
CSR specializes in Bluetooth chips and competes with Broadcom, which has the biggest market share for Bluetooth chips that go into Internet-connected devices.
Both companies supply chips to the top cell phone makers, including Nokia Corp., Apple Inc. and Research in Motion Ltd.
Energy-Audit Software Maker Relocates
A New Jersey provider of energy auditing software and services recently relocated to Irvine with plans to grow.
Phoenix Energy Technologies Inc., which started in 2004, leased 7,000 square feet of space in the Irvine Spectrum.
The company’s software tracks energy used in heating and cooling a building as well as other data, such as the weather outside and how many people are inside.
It helps its customers cut costs by crunching data and putting in place an automated system to regulate energy usage.
Take an operator of movie theaters. If it’s a cool day and only five people are occupying a particular theater, the heating and air conditioning system adjusts accordingly.
“With movie theaters, we can tie in with their ticket sales,” Chief Executive Lisa Varga said. “We can pre-cool and pre-heat based on weather data and other factors.”
Other customers include stores, colleges and corporations with many different buildings and offices to manage.
Some of Phoenix Energy’s retail customers are Best Buy, Office Depot, Ross, Sephora and Guitar Center.
Before the move, Varga had run the sales, marketing and software development from Orange County. She lives in Laguna Hills.
“A lot of the talent was out here and helping me grow the technology side of the business, so I decided to move our headquarters to California,” Varga said.
The company still has its New Jersey office.
Phoenix Energy has some 20 workers here and plans to add 50 jobs in the next year.
The company is privately held and doesn’t disclose financials.
It recently raised about $2.5 million from an undisclosed investor.
WiSpry Opens Denmark Office
Irvine’s WiSpry Inc., one of the area’s best-funded chip startups, opened a research and development office in Denmark on the heels of an $8 million contract with the Danish government.
The office is situated in a research park adjacent to Aalborg University.
WiSpry engineers went to Denmark last year to work on what’s called the “smart antenna front-end project” to develop tunable antennas based on WiSpry’s chip technology.
The research project aims to shrink the size and cost of cell phones and boost their battery life and antenna range.
WiSpry’s chips help extend the battery life of cell phones with fewer dropped calls.
The company landed its first big customer in 2009. The customer, a top cell phone maker, hasn’t been named.
Another ‘Cataclysm’ Record
Irvine’s Blizzard Entertainment Inc., the world’s biggest maker of video games for computers, can put another feather in its cap for “World of Warcraft” expansion pack “Cataclysm,” which was released in early December.
The company sold nearly 5 million copies of “Cataclysm” in the first month of release, setting a record for PC game sales. More than 3 million copies sold the first day, making it the fastest-selling PC game of all time.
“We’ve been floored by the community’s response so far, and we’d like to thank them for their continued passion and support for ‘World of Warcraft,’ and for helping ‘Cataclysm’ reach this incredible milestone,” cofounder and Chief Executive Mike Morhaime said.
“Cataclysm” is what’s called an “expansion pack”—which tacks on new levels, lore and playtime.
Sales of “Cataclysm” eclipsed the previous record of more than 2.8 million copies sold in 24 hours, set in November 2008 by Blizzard’s second expansion pack, dubbed “Wrath of the Lich King.”
The game sells for $40. A collector’s edition goes for $80.
