Peregrine Semiconductor Corp. (Peregrine), a leading provider of high-performance radio-frequency (RF) integrated circuits (ICs) announced that the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has launched an investigation into whether RF Micro Devices Inc. (RFMD) products infringe certain Peregrine patents relating to RF ICs and switch technology. The action and investigation further include Motorola Mobility Inc. and HTC Corp. (HTC), whose products incorporate the alleged infringing RF ICs.

The investigation is based on complaints filed by Peregrine with the ITC on February 14, 2012 and May 11, 2012 alleging that certain RFMD semiconductor devices infringe Peregrine patents related to silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology for RF ICs. The investigation involves five Peregrine patents and 38 separate patent claims. In the ITC action, Peregrine is seeking, among other remedies, an exclusion order preventing the importation and sale of infringing products in the United States.

“We are very pleased that the ITC has taken this matter seriously and will investigate our complaints,” said Jim Cable, president and chief executive officer. “The employees of Peregrine have spent 20 years of intensive research and development activity to bring our proprietary UltraCMOS® process and design innovations to the RF marketplace. We are steadfast in our position to protect that investment on behalf of all the stakeholders of Peregrine.”

Peregrine has been awarded numerous U.S. and foreign patents based on its work in developing and manufacturing high-performance products for the RF Front-End, which can be produced using standard CMOS-based semiconductor manufacturing processes. These patented innovations allow RF solutions to be produced with a combination of high levels of monolithic integration and performance, small size and low power consumption.