The patents related to technology used to help measure blood
oxygen and track pulse rates.
"We are very disappointed in the verdict of the jury and surprised
by the magnitude of the proposed award," Philips Chief Executive
Officer Frans van Houten said.
"Philips intends to pursue all avenues of appeal of this verdict at
both the District and Appellate courts in the US."
Philips said it would report the compensation award as an
exceptional charge to the earnings before interest, tax and
amortisation line of its third-quarter healthcare sector results.
Shares of Masimo closed 12.9 percent higher after the ruling on
Wednesday, rising $2.74 to $24.02 on the Nasdaq.
Jurors in Wilmington, Delaware needed less than a day of
deliberations before ruling in favour of Irvine, California-based
Masimo, following a two-week trial.
They also said Philips, a unit of Amsterdam-based Koninklijke
Philips NV, did not show it more likely than not that Masimo had
infringed one of its own patents.
The case, which began in 2009, concerned technology for pulse
oximetry, a non-invasive procedure to measure the level of oxygen
saturation in a patient's blood.
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Philips, which has offices in Andover, Massachusetts, had conceded
having infringed Masimo's patents, but claimed the patents were void
because they were "obvious" and described inadequately. The jury
said Philips did not prove those claims.
Masimo had sued Philips in February 2009. A Masimo spokesman
declined to comment on the verdict, and a lawyer for the company
could not immediately be reached.
The case is Masimo Corp v. Philips Electronics NA et al, U.S.
District Court, District of Delaware, No. 09-00080.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Thomas Escritt in
Amsterdam; Editing by James Dalgleish and Susan Thomas)
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