Sign Company Settles Patent Infringement Claim Aes Can Now Emerge From Bankruptcy

American Electronic Sign, a Spokane manufacturer of electronic readerboards and display systems, has paid its share of a $2 million court judgment, clearing the way to emerge from bankruptcy.

AES, which employs 40 people at the Spokane Industrial Park, said Friday that it has settled a patent infringement claim brought against it by Unisplay S.A. of Switzerland.

The settlement, according to AES president Nathan Batson, pays off the company’s one-third share of a jury award to Unisplay. It also gives AES license to continue using the disputed Unisplay patent for another 20 years.

A jury in May 1994 ruled in U.S. District Court in Spokane that AES and founder Luke Williams must pay Unisplay $1.63 million for improper use of the Swiss company’s signage patent. Interest and other fees brought the final award to more than $2 million, Batson said.

Both Williams and AES filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to shield their assets while they appealed the jury’s decision.

AES paid about $700,000 to settle the award. Williams, who continues to contest the jury’s finding, is responsible for the remaining two-thirds of the award.

AES decided the settlement would be the lease expensive way to clear its name and secure legal access to the Unisplay patent, Batson said.

“This frees up the company,” he said. “Business has been real good, but it’s a matter of how much better you could do without litigation - and Chapter 11 - hanging over you.”

With the patent dispute settled, AES will emerge from bankruptcy in 90 to 120 days, Batson said. Revenues and profits have hit record levels in the past six months, he said, declining to disclose specific figures.

AES signs are prominent fixtures in Spokane, though few people know it. AES manufactured East Valley High School’s controversial readerboard as well as the new 18-foot electronic message signs that alert Interstate 90 drivers to weather, accidents and lane closures.

, DataTimes