AMD 2010 Annual Report Download - page 129

Download and view the complete annual report

Please find page 129 of the 2010 AMD annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.

Page out of 152

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • 21
  • 22
  • 23
  • 24
  • 25
  • 26
  • 27
  • 28
  • 29
  • 30
  • 31
  • 32
  • 33
  • 34
  • 35
  • 36
  • 37
  • 38
  • 39
  • 40
  • 41
  • 42
  • 43
  • 44
  • 45
  • 46
  • 47
  • 48
  • 49
  • 50
  • 51
  • 52
  • 53
  • 54
  • 55
  • 56
  • 57
  • 58
  • 59
  • 60
  • 61
  • 62
  • 63
  • 64
  • 65
  • 66
  • 67
  • 68
  • 69
  • 70
  • 71
  • 72
  • 73
  • 74
  • 75
  • 76
  • 77
  • 78
  • 79
  • 80
  • 81
  • 82
  • 83
  • 84
  • 85
  • 86
  • 87
  • 88
  • 89
  • 90
  • 91
  • 92
  • 93
  • 94
  • 95
  • 96
  • 97
  • 98
  • 99
  • 100
  • 101
  • 102
  • 103
  • 104
  • 105
  • 106
  • 107
  • 108
  • 109
  • 110
  • 111
  • 112
  • 113
  • 114
  • 115
  • 116
  • 117
  • 118
  • 119
  • 120
  • 121
  • 122
  • 123
  • 124
  • 125
  • 126
  • 127
  • 128
  • 129
  • 130
  • 131
  • 132
  • 133
  • 134
  • 135
  • 136
  • 137
  • 138
  • 139
  • 140
  • 141
  • 142
  • 143
  • 144
  • 145
  • 146
  • 147
  • 148
  • 149
  • 150
  • 151
  • 152

In addition to product warranties, the Company, from time to time in its normal course of business,
indemnifies other parties, with whom it enters into contractual relationships, including customers, lessors and
parties to other transactions with the Company, with respect to certain matters. In these limited matters, the
Company has agreed to hold certain third parties harmless against specific types of claims or losses, such as
those arising from a breach of representations or covenants, third-party claims that the Company’s products when
used for their intended purpose(s) and under specific conditions infringe the intellectual property rights of a third
party, or other specified claims made against the indemnified party. It is not possible to determine the maximum
potential amount of liability under these indemnification obligations due to the unique facts and circumstances
that are likely to be involved in each particular claim and indemnification provision. Historically, payments made
by the Company under these obligations have not been material.
NOTE 17: Contingencies
Environmental Matters
The Company is named as a responsible party on Superfund clean-up orders for three sites in Sunnyvale,
California that are on the National Priorities List. Since 1981, the Company has discovered hazardous material
releases to the groundwater from former underground tanks and proceeded to investigate and conduct
remediation at these three sites. The chemicals released into the groundwater were commonly used in the
semiconductor industry in the United States in the wafer fabrication process prior to 1979.
In 1991, the Company received Final Site Clean-up Requirements Orders from the California Regional
Water Quality Control Board relating to the three sites. The Company has entered into settlement agreements
with other responsible parties on two of the orders. During the term of such agreements other parties have agreed
to assume most of the foreseeable costs as well as the primary role in conducting remediation activities under the
orders. The Company remains responsible for additional costs beyond the scope of the agreements as well as all
remaining costs in the event that the other parties do not fulfill their obligations under the settlement agreements.
To address anticipated future remediation costs under the orders, the Company has computed and recorded
an estimated environmental liability of approximately $3.6 million and has not recorded any potential insurance
recoveries in determining the estimated costs of the cleanup. The progress of future remediation efforts cannot be
predicted with certainty and these costs may change. The Company believes that any amount in addition to what
has already been accrued would not be material.
Legal Matters
SGI (Graphics Properties Holding, Inc.) v. ATI and AMD, Case No. 06-C-0611 in the United States District
Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
On October 23, 2006, Silicon Graphics Inc. (SGI) filed a patent infringement lawsuit against ATI and AMD
in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. SGI alleged that certain ATI products
infringe U.S. Patent No. 6,650,327 (the ‘327 patent) and later amended its complaint to add two additional
patents. The Company asserted counterclaims against SGI. SGI later abandoned its claims as to one patent, the
District Court granted the Company’s motion for summary judgment of non-infringement as to a second patent,
and the District Court also granted in part the Company’s motion for summary judgment of non-infringement on
the ‘327 patent. Immediately following the District Court’s entry of partial summary judgment, SGI moved to
dismiss its remaining infringement claims, and those claims were dismissed. The District Court granted the
Company’s request to proceed with the trial on its counterclaims of invalidity and inequitable conduct. The jury
verdict on February 8, 2008, found that certain claims of one of SGI’s patents were not invalid, and the District
Court subsequently dismissed an inequitable conduct claim raised by the Company. The Company and SGI both
appealed various aspects of the District Court’s rulings to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
121