Ocado to be paid £200m in deal to settle robotic patent case
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cado is to be paid £200 million in a take care of Norwegian firm AutoStore which accused it of breaching its patents.
In a press release on Saturday, Ocado Group plc, the automated grocery store firm, mentioned it and AutoStore have settled their long-running dispute over robotic patents.
A High Court decide dominated in March that AutoStore’s “patents were invalid” and that, regardless, Ocado didn’t infringe them.
In 2020 AutoStore tried to guard six patents that it mentioned Ocado had breached, and launched a authorized battle.
Ocado have introduced that AutoStore is to pay them £200 million, in 24 month-to-month instalments beginning in July 2023, underneath the brand new settlement.
I’m happy that we have now labored collectively to resolve our variations and might now proceed to give attention to what we do greatest, innovating, growing and enabling companions to entry world-beating know-how
Ocado mentioned that each side have been withdrawing their actions in opposition to one another and had reached a deal wherein each companies have freedom to entry and use know-how coated by one another’s pre-2020 patents.
Tim Steiner, Ocado Group chief govt, mentioned: “I am pleased that we have worked together to resolve our differences and can now continue to focus on what we do best, innovating, developing and enabling partners to access world-beating technology.”
Neill Abrams, group common counsel and firm secretary, added: “I’m delighted that this litigation has now ended on satisfactory terms.”
The full phrases of the settlement are confidential however Ocado mentioned that each companies are allowed to proceed to make use of and market their very own present merchandise with out problem of infringement of the opposite’s post-2020 patents.
It added that AutoStore just isn’t permitted to make or use a single-space cavity robotic in any jurisdiction the place Ocado has patent safety.
The deal additionally provides entry to a part of every occasion’s patent portfolio for them to make use of or develop their very own merchandise however this doesn’t imply there can be collaboration, know-how help or entry to precise merchandise.
When it first introduced its claims, AutoStore mentioned Ocado was utilizing a few of its patented robotic know-how.
Deals that the automated grocery store firm had with Marks & Spencer and Morrisons and Kroger within the US infringed on the patents, AutoStore claimed.
The firm had requested for the courts to ban Ocado from utilizing the know-how in future and was searching for compensation.