VIZIO Files Antitrust and Unfair Competition Lawsuit Against Funai

VIZIO Files Antitrust and Unfair Competition Lawsuit Against Funai

IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- VIZIO, Inc., America's HDTV Company, announced today that it has filed an antitrust and unfair competition lawsuit in the United States District Court, Central District of California, against Funai Electronics Co., Ltd., a Japanese distributor of digital televisions and related components. In the suit, VIZIO, a U.S. company based in Irvine, California, alleges that its competitor, Funai, acting alone and in concert with others, unlawfully restrained trade and monopolized the market for the licensing of technology used to interpret and retrieve information from a digital television broadcast signal, as well as the market for digital television sets and receivers.

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In the federal complaint, VIZIO alleges that Funai unlawfully acquired the rights to U.S. patent No. 6,115,074 (the "'074 patent"), which is subject to a standards setting organization overseeing digital television manufacturers, and has since unlawfully and unfairly discriminated against VIZIO in the licensing and enforcement of the '074 patent, to the detriment of trade and commerce. VIZIO's suit alleges that, in so doing, Funai has violated the federal Sherman Antitrust Act, the Clayton Act, and numerous provisions of California's unfair competition and antitrust laws.

"VIZIO, as America's HDTV Company, has been instrumental in making high quality flat panel TVs more affordable for Americans. Especially in light of the nation's digital TV transition, we won't allow a foreign competitor to divert us from our mission to bring affordable high quality HDTVs to millions of Americans," stated Laynie Newsome, VIZIO Co-Founder and VP Sales & Marketing Communications.

VIZIO's antitrust suit against Funai follows news yesterday that the International Trade Commission ("ITC") has invalidated a related patent that Funai had attempted to enforce against VIZIO (U.S. patent 5,329,369), and decided to review an administrative law judge's prior decision that VIZIO infringed on a portion of the '074 patent.

About VIZIO

VIZIO, Inc. "Where Vision Meets Value," headquartered in Irvine, California, is America's HDTV Company. In 2007, VIZIO skyrocketed to the top by becoming the #1 selling brand of flat panel HDTVs in North America and became the first American brand in over a decade to lead major categories in U.S. TV sales. VIZIO is committed to bringing feature-rich flat panel televisions to market at a value through practical innovation. VIZIO offers a broad range of award winning Plasma and LCD HDTVs including the new XVT series. VIZIO's products are found at Costco Wholesale, Sam's Club, Sears, Walmart, Target, BJ's Wholesale, and other retailers nationwide along with authorized online partners. VIZIO has won numerous awards including a #1 ranking in the Inc. 500 for Top Companies in Computers and Electronics, Good Housekeeping's Best Big-Screens, CNET's Top 10 Holiday Gifts, PC World's Best Buy among others. For more information, please call 888-VIZIOCE or visit on the web at www.VIZIO.com.

The V, VIZIO, Where Vision Meets Value names, phrase and symbols are trademarks or registered trademarks of VIZIO, Inc. All other trademarks may be the property of their respective holders.

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Source: VIZIO, Inc.

CONTACT: Jim Noyd of Noyd Communications Inc., +1-310-951-3768,
jim.noyd@noydcom.com, for VIZIO, Inc.

Web Site: http://www.vizio.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment