Judge Rules Intel Chips Infringe Patent

Intel(INTC Quote) might have to cough up a $150 million payment after a federal judge in Texas ruled that its next-generation microprocessor infringes a competitor's patents.

The judge found parallel processing technology in Intel's Itanium chip infringes patents owned by Intergraph. While the two companies had previously entered a settlement over similar claims, the deal excluded the Texas case and provided for an additional $150 million payment by Intel if it was decided in Intergraph's favor.

Intel will try to get the ruling overturned before a final judgment is reached.

Separately, Intel saw its earnings estimates cut by two brokerages. UBS Warburg estimated the company will earn 74 to 80 cents a share next year and cut its price target to $18 from $26. Salomon cut its 2002 estimate to 70 cents from 79 cents and dropped the price target to $20 from $25.

Intel shares were up 1.2% at $14.35 on Instinet.