Dec 23 - Netflix ( NFLX ) sued Broadcom ( AVGO ) in
California federal court on Monday, accusing the chipmaker's
cloud computing subsidiary VMware of violating its patent rights
in "virtual machines" that run another computer's operating
software on a host computer.
The lawsuit said VMware's cloud software infringes five
Netflix ( NFLX ) patents covering aspects of operating virtual machines.
Broadcom ( AVGO ) and Netflix ( NFLX ) have been embroiled in a separate
patent dispute since 2018 over Netflix's ( NFLX ) alleged infringement of
Broadcom ( AVGO ) patents related to video streaming technology, with
cases in California, Germany and the Netherlands. Broadcom's ( AVGO )
U.S. lawsuit against Netflix ( NFLX ) is scheduled to go to trial next
June.
A Netflix ( NFLX ) spokesperson declined to comment on its new
lawsuit. Spokespeople for Broadcom ( AVGO ) did not immediately respond
to a request for comment.
Palo Alto, California-based Broadcom ( AVGO ) acquired VMware for $69
billion last year. Netflix's ( NFLX ) lawsuit said that VMware's vSphere
virtualization platform for deploying and managing virtual
machines infringes the streaming giant's patents related to
virtual-machine communications.
Netflix ( NFLX ) asked the court for an unspecified amount of
monetary damages.
The case is Netflix Inc ( NFLX ) v. Broadcom Inc ( AVGO ), U.S. District Court
for the Northern District of California, No. 3:24-cv-09324.
For Netflix ( NFLX ): Rachel Lamkin, Lauren Dreyer and Megan White of
Baker Botts
For Broadcom ( AVGO ): attorney information not yet available
(Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington)