IBM selling LCD patents to AU Optronics ?

from etaiwannews through Bloomberg, July 1:

AU Optronics Corp., the world's third- largest maker of flat-panel displays used in computers and televisions, said it signed an agreement yesterday to buy about 170 U.S. patents related to liquid-crystal display technology from International Business Machines Corp.

The agreement, covering almost all LCD-related technology, includes IBM's counterpart patents in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and other countries, AU said today in an e-mailed statement yesterday. It didn't reveal the dollar value of the transaction.

With the patents assigned, AU Optronics will further strengthen its intellectual property position, the statement said. IBM is the world's largest computer-services provider.

Cross-authorization of patents

AU Optronics and IBM also entered into an agreement on cross-authorization of LCD patents, the statement said.

The patents cover almost all aspects of the key TFT-LCD-related technology, it said.

AU Optronics, Taiwan's leading manufacturer of TFT liquid crystal display screens, ranks third in the world after Samsung and LG Philips of South Korea.