Japan Grants Chip Patent to Texas Instruments

More than 30 years after the integrated circuit was developed, Japan has issued a patent to Texas Instruments Inc. for the basic computer chip, company officials said Tuesday.

Analysts said the company could reap hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties a year from Japanese computer manufacturers during the lifetime of the patent, which expires in November, 2001. And the price of the company’s stock immediately shot up on the speculation, rising $2.50 to close at $32 on the New York Stock Exchange.

However, Texas Instruments officials cautioned that there will be no immediate royalty payments because the company’s existing licensing agreements with its Japanese business partners do not expire until the end of next year.

“The earliest possible effect this patent can have on royalty payments is 1991,” the spokesman said. “And it is impossible to predict what those royalty payments might be.” But the spokesman acknowledged that the Japanese market for integrated circuits exceeds $15 billion annually, and noted that the recent patent covers all integrated circuits made, used or sold in that country.