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SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Gateway Inc. agreed Wednesday to pay $47 million to Hewlett-Packard Co. to settle a series of patent lawsuits, and the rival computer makers entered into a seven-year cross-licensing deal.
The agreement settles a series of lawsuits and countersuits that began in March 2004, when HP claimed in U.S. District Court in San Diego that five of its patents were being infringed by Gateway.
It was the same month that Gateway had acquired its smaller rival, eMachines Inc., which already had a cross-licensing agreement with HP. Shortly afterward, HP exercised a right within the deal and terminated the license, said Joe Beyers, HP's vice president of intellectual property and licensing.
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