| In 2017, KIP claimed patent infringement against Apple
| Suspected use of KAIST technology in iPhone and iPad series
| KIP submitted withdrawal letter of investigation application in March due to settlement

The Trade Commission under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held its 387th meeting on the 25th at the Trade Commission conference room in the Government Sejong Building and decided to conclude the FinFET semiconductor patent infringement investigation.

The FinFET semiconductor patent infringement investigation began in December 2017 when KIP, a subsidiary of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) that manages intellectual property rights, filed an application for investigation of unfair trade practices with the Trade Commission, claiming patent infringement against Apple Korea Limited.

KAIST's FinFET semiconductor patent is a technology related to basic semiconductor elements used in the manufacturing of application processors (AP) that serve as the brains of smartphones and tablet PCs.

KIP claimed that KAIST's patented technology was used in the process where TSMC, a renowned foundry company in Taiwan, manufactured and supplied AP chips for the iPhone and iPad series imported by Apple Korea.

In response, Apple Korea requested invalidation trials of the KAIST patents before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and TSMC filed civil lawsuits against KAIST in Korean and Taiwanese courts, expanding the KAIST patent dispute that started with the Trade Commission's investigation into an international dispute among domestic and foreign companies.

While the Trade Commission had been conducting the investigation through written exchanges between the parties and technical briefing sessions to examine the validity and infringement of the patents, on March 29, KIP submitted a withdrawal letter of the investigation application to the Trade Commission citing a settlement between the parties.

Although the withdrawal letter did not specify the detailed settlement terms, the Trade Commission presumes that sufficient settlement has been reached between the two parties, including payment of patent royalties.

The Trade Commission decided to conclude the investigation in respect of the parties' wishes, and following the Trade Commission's decision to conclude the investigation, all related patent disputes pending before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and civil courts are expected to be withdrawn.