The Federal Circuit Affirms PTAB Ruling Upholding Validity of Netlist '608 Patent

Rhea-AI Summary

Netlist (OTCQB:NLST) announced that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the December 2024 PTAB final written decision upholding the validity of Netlist's U.S. Patent No. 10,268,608 (the '608 Patent) in an IPR brought by Samsung.

Samsung has 90 days from the CAFC judgment to petition the U.S. Supreme Court. The '608 Patent was part of a $118 million November 2024 jury damages award against Samsung and is one of six patents Netlist has asserted in its ITC complaint seeking exclusion and cease-and-desist orders against Samsung, Google and Super Micro.

The company noted a prior CAFC affirmation in March 2025 for U.S. Patent No. 10,217,523 (the '523 Patent).

Positive

• CAFC affirmed PTAB validity of '608 Patent
• $118 million jury damages award includes '608 Patent
• Six patents asserted in ITC complaint seeking exclusion orders
• Prior CAFC affirmation (Mar 2025) for '523 Patent

Negative

• Samsung has 90 days to petition the U.S. Supreme Court, creating timing uncertainty
• ITC relief (exclusion/cease-and-desist) is sought but not yet granted

Key Figures

Damages award $118 million November 2024 jury verdict against Samsung involving the ’608 patent

Appeal deadline 90 days Samsung’s window to petition the U.S. Supreme Court after CAFC judgment

Patents in ITC case 6 patents Number of Netlist patents asserted at the U.S. ITC against Samsung, Google, Super Micro

Key asserted patents 2 patents ’608 and ’523 patents are two of six asserted in the ITC complaint

Market Reality Check

$0.7900 Last Close

Volume Volume 449,562 is 0.46x the 20-day average of 969,220, indicating muted pre-news activity. low

Technical Price 0.6902 is trading below the 200-day MA at 0.77, reflecting a weak longer-term trend before this ruling.

Peers on Argus

Peers show minimal movement, with most at 0% and only BRCHF up 12.5%, suggesting this legal outcome is company-specific rather than a sector-wide driver.

Historical Context

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Dec 01	ITC support comment	Positive	+22.4%	US agencies filed public interest comment backing ongoing ITC action.
Nov 06	Q3 2025 earnings	Neutral	-2.1%	Quarter showed slight sales, margin improvement but continued net loss.
Oct 28	Earnings call notice	Neutral	+0.7%	Scheduled Q3 2025 results release and investor conference call details.
Oct 06	Direct equity offering	Negative	-34.9%	$10M registered direct stock and warrant offering at $0.70 per share.
Sep 30	ITC legal action	Positive	+9.4%	Filed ITC complaint over six DDR5 and HBM patents vs major tech firms.

Pattern Detected

Recent Netlist news events have consistently seen price moves that align with the apparent positive or negative nature of the announcements.

Recent Company History

This announcement extends a series of legal and capital markets developments for Netlist. A $10.0M registered direct offering in early October 2025 coincided with a sharp decline, while a September ITC filing over six patents and a December public-interest comment in that ITC action saw double-digit gains. Q3 2025 results showed modest revenue and gross profit growth but ongoing losses. Today’s Federal Circuit affirmation further reinforces the company’s IP enforcement campaign already reflected in ITC and Texas jury actions, including a $118M Samsung damages award tied to the ’608 patent.

Market Pulse Summary

The stock surged +13.3% in the session following this news. A strong positive reaction aligns with Netlist’s pattern of pronounced moves around legal milestones, such as the prior ITC-related gains of 9.4% and 22.45%. The Federal Circuit’s validation of the ’608 patent reinforces an existing $118M jury award and the broader ITC campaign over six patents. Investors would still need to weigh balance sheet strain, prior dilutive offerings, and the possibility of further legal steps, including any Supreme Court petition.

Key Terms

patent trial and appeal board regulatory

"affirmed the December 2024 final written decision by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)"

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board is an administrative body that reviews and decides challenges to the validity of issued patents and hears appeals of patent office decisions. For investors, its rulings can make or break a company’s exclusive rights to a product or technology—similar to a referee overturning a game-winning call—affecting future revenue, legal costs, and the value of related securities.

inter partes review regulatory

"upholding the validity of Netlist's U.S. Patent No. 10,268,608 ... in an Inter Partes Review (IPR) brought by Samsung"

An inter partes review is a formal proceeding at the U.S. Patent Office where a third party asks a panel to re-examine and possibly cancel all or part of an issued patent based on earlier public information. Investors care because the outcome can remove or uphold a company’s exclusive rights, directly affecting product exclusivity, potential revenue, legal exposure and the valuation of businesses that rely on that patent—like asking a neutral referee to re-check a key call in a game.

u.s. court of appeals for the federal circuit regulatory

"the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) has affirmed the December 2024 final written decision"

A U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is a national federal appeals court that reviews legal disputes in specialized areas such as patents, government contracts, and certain trade and regulatory matters. Its rulings act like a referee’s call that sets the rules for many companies at once, and can change how protected a product is, whether a contract stands, or how regulators must act—outcomes that often move investor expectations and company valuations.

u.s. international trade commission regulatory

"its complaint before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) against Samsung, Google and Super Micro"

A federal agency that acts like a referee for cross‑border trade, investigating whether imported goods unfairly hurt U.S. businesses or violate U.S. trade laws and patents. Its findings and recommendations — such as tariffs, import restrictions, or blocking certain products — can change supply chains, raise costs, or protect domestic competitors, so investors watch its decisions for potential impacts on company revenues, margins, and market access.

cease and desist orders regulatory

"Netlist is seeking exclusion and cease and desist orders, which would direct U.S. Customs"

A cease and desist order is an official instruction from a regulator, court, or other authority telling a company or individual to stop a specific activity immediately and to refrain from repeating it, similar to a stop sign enforced by law. For investors, such an order can halt product sales or operations, harm reputation, trigger fines or lawsuits, and create uncertainty that may reduce revenue and depress a company’s stock price.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

-The '608 Patent Asserted in the ITC and Part of $118 Million Damages Award Against Samsung-

IRVINE, CA / ACCESS Newswire / December 11, 2025 / Netlist, Inc. (OTCQB:NLST) today announced that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) has affirmed the December 2024 final written decision by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) upholding the validity of Netlist's U.S. Patent No. 10,268,608 (the '608 Patent) in an Inter Partes Review (IPR) brought by Samsung. The '608 Patent had also been challenged in two other IPRs brought by Micron, both of which were denied institution by the PTAB. Samsung has 90 days from the CAFC's judgment to file a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.

C.K. Hong, Netlist's Chief Executive Officer, said: "We are pleased with the appellate court's ruling. This is the second time this year the CAFC has affirmed a decision validating a Netlist patent. These rulings support Netlist's efforts to prevent the use of its intellectual property without a license." In March 2025, the CAFC had issued a judgment affirming the PTAB's decision upholding the validity of Netlist's U.S. Patent No. 10,217,523 (the '523 Patent) in another IPR brought by Samsung.

The '608 and '523 Patents are two of the six patents Netlist has asserted in its complaint before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) against Samsung, Google and Super Micro. At the ITC, Netlist is seeking exclusion and cease and desist orders, which would direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection to stop Samsung memory products that infringe Netlist's patents from entering the U.S. The '608 Patent is also part of the November 2024 jury verdict in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas where Netlist obtained a $118 million damages award against Samsung.

About Netlist
Netlist is a leading innovator in advanced memory and storage solutions. With a rich portfolio of patented technologies, Netlist's inventions are foundational to the advancement of AI computing. To learn more about Netlist, please visit www.netlist.com.

Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release include, without limitation, statements about Netlist's ability to execute on its strategic initiatives, the results of pending litigations and Netlist's ability to successfully defend its intellectual property. Forward-looking statements are statements other than historical facts and often address future events or Netlist's future performance and reflect management's present expectations regarding future events and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by any forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, among others: risks that Samsung will appeal the final orders by the trial court for the Samsung litigation, risks that Micron will appeal the final orders by the trial court (appeals in general could cause a lengthy delay in Netlist's ability to collect damage awards, could overturn the verdicts or reduce the damages awards); risks that Netlist will suffer adverse outcomes in its litigation with Samsung, Micron or Google or in its various other active proceedings to defend the validity of its patents; risks related to Netlist's plans for its intellectual property, including its strategies for monetizing, licensing, expanding, and defending its patent portfolio; risks associated with patent infringement litigation initiated by Netlist, or by others against Netlist, as well as the costs and unpredictability of any such litigation; risks associated with Netlist's product sales, including the market and demand for products sold by Netlist and its ability to successfully develop and launch new products that are attractive to the market; the success of product, joint development and licensing partnerships; the competitive landscape of Netlist's industry; and general economic, political and market conditions, including the ongoing conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Palestine, factory slowdowns and/or shutdowns, and changes in international tariff policies. All forward-looking statements reflect management's present assumptions, expectations and beliefs regarding future events and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by any forward-looking statements. These and other risks and uncertainties are described in Netlist's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024 filed with the SEC on March 28, 2025, and the other filings it makes with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including any subsequently filed quarterly and current reports. In particular, you are encouraged to review the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 27, 2025 filed with the SEC on November 12, 2025. In light of these risks, uncertainties and other factors, these forward-looking statements should not be relied on as predictions of future events. These forward-looking statements represent Netlist's assumptions, expectations and beliefs only as of the date they are made, and except as required by law, Netlist undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements for any reason.

For more information, please contact:
Investors/Media
Mike Smargiassi
The Plunkett Group
NLST@theplunkettgroup.com
(212) 739-6729

SOURCE: Netlist, Inc.

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

FAQ

What did the Federal Circuit decide about Netlist's '608 Patent (NLST) on December 11, 2025?

The Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB's December 2024 decision upholding the validity of Netlist's '608 Patent in an IPR brought by Samsung.

How does the CAFC ruling affect the $118 million damages award against Samsung for NLST?

The '608 Patent upheld by the CAFC was part of the November 2024 $118 million jury damages award against Samsung.

What are Netlist's next legal actions after the CAFC affirmation of the '608 Patent (NLST)?

Netlist continues to pursue ITC exclusion and cease-and-desist orders for six asserted patents, including the '608 Patent.

Can Samsung appeal the CAFC decision on Netlist's '608 Patent (NLST)?

Yes. Samsung has 90 days from the CAFC judgment to file a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Has the Federal Circuit affirmed other Netlist patents recently (NLST)?

Yes. The CAFC affirmed the PTAB's decision upholding Netlist's '523 Patent in March 2025.