UMC Files Patent Infringement Lawsuit against Micron

Litigation covers three memory products sold in China that violate UMC’s patent rights

Hsinchu, Taiwan, January 12, 2018 - United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE: UMC; TWSE: 2303) ("UMC"), a leading global semiconductor foundry, today announced that the company has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Micron Semiconductor (Xi'an) Co., Ltd. and Micron Semiconductor (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. in the Fuzhou Intermediate People's Court of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The lawsuit covers three areas that allegedly infringe upon UMC’s patent rights in China, including specific memory applications that relate to DDR4, SSD and memory used in graphics cards.

In the complaint, UMC has requested the court to order the defendant(s) to stop manufacturing, processing, importing, selling and intending to sell the allegedly infringing products, destroy all inventory and related molds and tools and demand that Micron compensate the company for a total amount of RMB 270 million in damages.

UMC has devoted a great deal of resources and manpower to researching and developing semiconductor manufacturing technology. Its achievements can be applied to logic chips or memory chips (DRAM), and the company has applied for patents in various countries while continuing to monitor these patents as market conditions evolve. After conducting an in-depth review, UMC found that Micron's products sold in mainland China did indeed infringe upon the patent rights of the company, and thus patent infringement litigation has been pursued in order to obtain fair judgment.

About UMC

UMC (NYSE: UMC, TWSE: 2303) is a leading global semiconductor foundry that provides advanced IC production for applications spanning every major sector of the electronics industry. UMC’s robust foundry solutions enable chip designers to leverage the company’s sophisticated technology and manufacturing, which include high volume production 28nm gate-last High-K/Metal Gate technology, ultra-low power platform processes specifically engineered for Internet of Things (IoT) applications and the automotive industry’s highest-rated AEC-Q100 Grade-0 manufacturing capabilities for production of ICs found in cars. UMC’s 11 wafer fabs are strategically located throughout Asia and are able to produce over 500,000 wafers per month. The company employs nearly 19,000 people worldwide, with offices in Taiwan, China, Europe, Japan, Korea, Singapore, and the United States. UMC can be found on the web at http://www.umc.com.