News Room

May. 23, 2023

Settlement of KSF Patent Infringement Lawsuit With Trading Company Selling US Bridgelux LED Products

On May 17, 2023, Nichia Corporation (“Nichia”) and CoreStaff Co., Ltd. (“CoreStaff”) settled the patent infringement lawsuit pending before the Tokyo District Court (Case No. Reiwa 5 (Wa) No. 70062) based on Nichia’s Japanese Patent No. 4974310, relating to KSF (PFS) phosphors, in which Nichia had sought an injunction against patent infringement and damages.

Out of respect for Nichia's intellectual property rights and other considerations, CoreStaff, promptly and without proceeding with the lawsuit, discontinued handling the products subject to the lawsuit, specifically the “F90” family of LEDs made by the U.S.-based LED manufacturer Bridgelux, Inc, which CoreStaff had been selling.

While Nichia welcomes fair competition and believes it often leads to improved innovation, which ultimately serves the greater good of the industry and its consumers, Nichia will not shrink from steadfastly protecting its intellectual property, including its KSF phosphor-LED patent portfolio. As a leading innovator, known for producing high quality LEDs and ever improving the nature of light and optical mechanisms, Nichia's intellectual property serves as a springboard for its own future innovation, and therefore must be defended.

About NICHIA Corporation
Having “Ever Researching for a Brighter World” as a motto, NICHIA takes great pride in being the technology leader and world's largest LED manufacturer. Founded in 1956 as a specialist chemical producer, NICHIA quickly became the leader in luminescent materials (phosphors). NICHIA later developed and commercialized the first high brightness blue LED in 1993 and the first white LED in 1996. Additional nitride-based LEDs in various colors were developed, including ultraviolet and visible laser diodes. NICHIA believes that its products will remain at the forefront of energy efficient solutions throughout the world for years to come.