NanoString Responds to Decision of the Regional Court of Munich
SEATTLE & MUNICH–(BUSINESS WIRE)– NanoString Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: NSTG), a leading provider of life science tools for discovery and translational research, today responded to the Regional Court of Munich’s recent decision finding that NanoString’s CosMx Spatial Molecular Imager, when used to detect RNA targets, infringes the German part of the European patent 2794928B1. The Munich court granted 10x Genomics, Inc. and President and Fellows of Harvard College the right to enforce an injunction against use of the CosMx SMI instrument for RNA detection in Germany. NanoString believes the Munich court came to an erroneous conclusion and will appeal the decision.
The scope and impact of the Munich’s court’s decision is limited solely to Germany. In addition, the decision does not apply to the use of the CosMx SMI instrument for detection of proteins, which NanoString will continue to offer and support.
“We respectfully disagree with the recent decision of the Regional Court of Munich,” said Brad Gray, President and CEO of NanoString. “We continue to believe that 10x’s claims are without merit. The CosMx SMI is fundamentally different from any other spatial biology platform on the market, offering capabilities that far exceed those of any other spatial analysis system, including any offered by 10x. We believe 10x’s actions with respect to NanoString’s breakthrough CosMx SMI system wrongly stifle competition and threaten to impede critical research by German scientists. NanoString will continue to pursue all legal avenues to vigorously defend against 10x’s claims. We believe we will be vindicated on appeal in the immediate case and are confident in our arguments before the German Federal Patent Court where we are seeking a ruling to invalidate the patent in the nullity action. Providing customers with the industry’s most comprehensive product portfolio of spatial biology and bulk gene expression solutions remains our top priority and we will continue to work tirelessly to achieve that end.”
NanoString is challenging the asserted patent’s validity through a parallel nullity action with the German Federal Patent Court in Munich. A decision in the nullity action is expected following a hearing scheduled for May 2024. If the relevant claims of the patent are invalidated by the Federal Patent Court in the nullity action, such a ruling would remove the basis for the Regional Court of Munich’s finding in the patent infringement case and allow NanoString to have the related injunction lifted.
About NanoString
NanoString Technologies, a leader in spatial biology, offers an ecosystem of innovative discovery and translational research solutions, empowering our customers to map the universe of biology. The GeoMx® Digital Spatial Profiler is a flexible and consistent solution combining the power of whole tissue imaging with gene expression and protein data for spatial whole transcriptomics and proteomics. The CosMx™ Spatial Molecular Imager is a single-cell imaging platform powered by spatial multiomics enabling researchers to map single cells in their native environments to extract deep biological insights and novel discoveries from one experiment. The AtoMx™ Spatial Informatics Platform is a cloud-based informatics solution with advanced analytics and global collaboration capabilities, enabling powerful spatial biology insights anytime, anywhere. At the foundation of our research tools is our nCounter® Analysis System, which offers a secure way to easily profile the expression of hundreds of genes, proteins, miRNAs, or copy number variations, simultaneously with high sensitivity and precision. For more information, visit www.nanostring.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intention to appeal the decision of the Regional Court of Munich, our intention to continue vigorously defending against 10x’s claims, our belief that we will be successful in our appeal in the case before the Regional Court of Munich, our expectations regarding the outcome of the nullity action we are pursuing in the German Federal Patent Court and the resulting impact on any continuing injunction, the expected timing of the ongoing litigation, the ultimate disposition of these pending cases, the impact of the current injunction on our business and our operations and business outlook. Such statements are based on current assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, include that we may not successfully appeal the Regional Court of Munich’s decision; we may be unsuccessful in the nullity action we are pursuing with the German Federal Patent Court; ongoing litigation may be prolonged and a final disposition may be delayed; market acceptance of our products; adverse conditions in the general domestic and global economic markets; the effects of ongoing litigation on our business; the impact of competition; as well as the other risks set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. NanoString Technologies disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
NanoString, NanoString Technologies, the NanoString logo, GeoMx, CosMx, AtoMx and nCounter are trademarks or registered trademarks of NanoString Technologies, Inc. in various jurisdictions.
Doug Farrell
Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications
dfarrell@nanostring.com
Phone: 206-602-1768
Source: NanoString Technologies, Inc.