Vicor Corporation Announces Recent Federal Circuit Decision / SynQor Power Converter Claims Held to Be Invalid

ANDOVER, MA--(Marketwired - Mar 16, 2015) -  In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C., on March 13, 2015, issued a ruling invalidating key claims of a power converter patent asserted by SynQor Inc. against Vicor Corporation (NASDAQ: VICR) and Cisco Systems, Inc. in litigation currently pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Reversing a decision of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the Federal Circuit agreed with Vicor that prior art anticipated certain claims of SynQor's 7,072,190 patent and ordered the USPTO to reconsider the obviousness of the remaining claims.

Commenting on the decision, Dr. Patrizio Vinciarelli, Vicor's Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The Federal Circuit decision turns the tables on SynQor, which resorted to attacking competitors and customers with bogus intellectual property after failing in the marketplace with its inferior bus converters. As a company founded on innovation, Vicor respects legitimate IP interests of others. However, Vicor will confront abusive IP litigation where, as here, illegitimate claims are asserted to suppress competition from superior products known not to infringe."

In the course of its discovery of SynQor, Vicor uncovered evidence that the founder of SynQor, Dr. Martin F. Schlecht, while a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology years before applying for patents assigned to SynQor, had directed research sponsored by the General Electric Company in bus converter technology pioneered by Dr. Robert L. Steigerwald at GE. Remarkably, the Federal Circuit concluded that Dr. Schlecht's alleged invention was anticipated by the combination of two earlier patents held by Dr. Steigerwald.

Vicor has asserted counterclaims against SynQor. In its counterclaims, Vicor seeks damages for unfair and deceptive trade practices and tortious interference engaged in by SynQor as part of its campaign to discourage customers from using Vicor's superior products so as to monopolize the bus converter market. Vicor will hold SynQor, and its principals, accountable for damages they have intentionally caused.

Dr. Vinciarelli added, "Steigerwald's pioneering work, known to Schlecht from his days at MIT, and other prior art, render SynQor's monopolistic claims to bus converters and IBA clearly invalid. SynQor's threats of litigation against industry competitors and customers are the acts of a company whose portfolio of bogus patents is finally crumbling."

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Any statement in this press release that is not a statement of historical fact is a forward-looking statement, and, the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intend," "estimate," "plans," "assumes," "may," "will," "would," "should," "continue," "prospective," "project," and other similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based upon management's current expectations and estimates as to the prospective events and circumstances that may or may not be within the company's control and as to which there can be no assurance. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those economic, business, operational and financial considerations set forth in Vicor's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, under Part I, Item I -- "Business," under Part I, Item 1A -- "Risk Factors," under Part I, Item 3 -- "Legal Proceedings," and under Part II, Item 7 -- "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations." The risk factors set forth in the Annual Report on Form 10-K may not be exhaustive. Therefore, the information contained in the Annual Report on Form 10-K should be read together with other reports and documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including Forms 10-Q, 8-K and 10-K, which may supplement, modify, supersede or update those risk factors. Vicor does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of future events or developments.

Vicor Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and markets modular power components and complete power systems based upon a portfolio of patented technologies. Headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts, Vicor sells its products primarily to customers in the higher-performance, higher-power segments of the power systems market, including aerospace and defense electronics, enterprise and high performance computing, industrial equipment and automation, telecommunications and network infrastructure, and vehicles and transportation markets.