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Left, Ocado’s automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS), and proper, AutoStore’s ASRS. | Source: Ocado, AutoStore.
Ocado Group and AutoStore Holdings have introduced a whole settlement of all claims between the businesses of their world patent dispute. The dispute started in October 2020, when AutoStore asserted that Ocado infringed upon six of its patents, and included lawsuits in each the UK and the US.
Both AutoStore and Ocado function automated storage and retrieval techniques (ASRS) that function on comparable rules. The phrases of the brand new settlement embrace AutoStore paying £200 million, round $256 million, to Ocado in installments over the following two years. All of the patent litigation claims are additionally being withdrawn globally.
Ocado and AutoStore each agreed to a mutually helpful world cross-license of one another’s pre-2020 patents, and each corporations can proceed to make use of and market all of their present merchandise with out problem. Under the phrases of the settlement, Ocado retains unique rights to the Single Space Robot.
“I am pleased we have been able to settle the disputes in a constructive and collaborative manner,” Tim Steiner, CEO of Ocado, stated. “We can now each move forward and concentrate on providing our partners with world-beating technology.”
“We are glad to have achieved a resolution that gives both companies [the] opportunity and freedom to commercialize our extensive patent portfolios,” Mat Hovland Vikse, CEO of AutoStore, stated. “This settlement resolves our differences and allows us to continue focusing on our respective business goals.”
Earlier this 12 months, the UK High Court dominated that AutoStore’s patents had been invalid as a result of AutoStore had disclosed its know-how publically in a enterprise take care of the Central Bank of Russia earlier than the corporate filed its patents.
In December 2021, AutoStore misplaced an identical patent infringement lawsuit filed with the International Trade Commission (ITC). US ITC Judge Charles Bullock dominated three of AutoStore’s patents concerned within the case had been invalid, and that Ocado didn’t infringe upon the fourth patent within the trial.