HOUSTON, July 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ION Geophysical
Corporation (NYSE: IO) today announced that the Federal Circuit
Court denied WesternGeco's petition for a rehearing on the Patent
Trial and Appeal Board's decision to cancel their patent
claims. ION engaged in parallel proceedings against
WesternGeco arising from a procedure known as "Inter Partes
Review," an administrative proceeding at the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office that allows any party to challenge the validity of
a patent.
The Patent and Trademark Office ruled in 2015 that four of the
six patent claims that WesternGeco prevailed on in their case
against us in the District Court never should have been
granted. WesternGeco appealed this ruling to the Court of
Appeals, and, in May, the Court of Appeals affirmed the
invalidation of these four WesternGeco streamer system patents.
"While the District Court didn't assign particular values to any
of the six claims, we believe that the bulk of any damages assessed
against us are attributable to cancelled patent claims," stated
Brian Hanson, ION's President and
Chief Executive Officer. "After the Supreme Court heard
arguments in our case in April, the Federal Circuit affirmed a
finding by the Patent and Trademark Appeals Board that four of the
six patent claims that supported the damages to WesternGeco were
based on patents that never should have issued. We will seek
a new trial as to damages and will forcefully argue in any new
trial that the two remaining claims cannot support lost
profits. In the event that we do not prevail in the Court of
Appeals on our direct competitor claim, we intend to forcefully
challenge the award of lost profits on the basis that the bulk of
WesternGeco's damages are attributable to patents that never should
have been issued."
About ION
ION develops and leverages innovative technologies, creating
value through data capture, analysis and optimization to enhance
critical decision-making, enabling superior returns. For more
information, visit iongeo.com.
Contacts
ION (Investor relations)
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Steve Bate, +1 281.552.3011
steve.bate@iongeo.com
ION (Legal)
EVP, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary
Matthew Powers, +1 713.366.7226
matt.powers@iongeo.com
The information herein contains certain forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act
of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
These forward-looking statements may include information and other
statements that are not of historical fact. Actual results may vary
materially from those described in these forward-looking
statements. All forward-looking statements reflect numerous
assumptions and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. These
risks and uncertainties include risks associated with the
WesternGeco litigation and other related proceedings. We cannot
predict the final outcome or timing of this litigation or the
related proceedings. For additional information regarding the
WesternGeco litigation, see our Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2017, filed on
February 8, 2018. Additional risk
factors, which could affect actual results, are disclosed by the
Company in its fillings with the Securities and Exchange Commission
("SEC"), including its Form 10-K, Form 10-Qs and Form 8-Ks filed
during the year. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to
revise or update any forward-looking statements.
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/federal-circuit-court-denies-westerngecos-petition-for-rehearing-on-cancelled-patent-claims-300682337.html
SOURCE ION Geophysical Corporation