March 20, 2025
Signify & Keystone Reach Settlement in Principle
Settlement follows years of warnings from Signify about alleged patent infringement
Keystone Technologies and Signify have reached a settlement agreement in principle, signaling a resolution to the patent infringement lawsuit that has been ongoing since last year. The agreement, announced this week, follows months of litigation that saw the case transferred from Georgia to Pennsylvania and highlights Keystone’s lack of response to Signify’s repeated infringement warnings before the lawsuit was filed.
The lawsuit, filed by Signify in May 2024, alleged that Keystone had unlawfully used patented LED technologies in several of its lighting products, including the XFIT Area Light, Aviva Retrofit Downlights, and SmartDrive LED Lamps. According to court filings, Signify had attempted to engage Keystone in discussions about licensing the technology as early as 2020 — attempts that, according to Signify, went unanswered.
Emails included in the original complaint showed multiple letters sent to Keystone from 2020 to 2024, notifying the company of alleged infringement and inviting discussion. The response? No reply. Keystone did not engage with Signify’s legal team prior to the lawsuit being filed, which ultimately led to litigation.
Legal Developments and Settlement Agreement
Despite Keystone’s early decision not to respond, the legal battle took a procedural turn in December when the case was transferred to Pennsylvania. Keystone successfully argued that Georgia was not the appropriate venue, given that its headquarters and primary operations are in Pennsylvania. With the case now on Keystone’s home turf, the companies have opted for a settlement rather than a drawn-out trial.
Details of the settlement agreement remain undisclosed, and the parties have yet to finalize the terms. However, industry observers speculate that the resolution could involve Keystone joining Signify’s EnabLED licensing program, which grants companies the right to use Signify’s patented technologies for a fee. Similar settlements have been reached in past patent disputes between Signify and other manufacturers.
Next Steps
Once finalized, the settlement will bring the litigation to a close, avoiding the need for a jury trial and potential damages ruling. Signify has long leveraged its extensive patent portfolio and legal resources to encourage manufacturers to join its EnabLED licensing program or, in some cases, to adjust their product designs or cease selling certain products.
The Keystone lawsuit follows a familiar pattern in which legal action ultimately leads to a negotiated resolution. Whether Keystone could have avoided litigation through earlier engagement remains an open question, but the settlement suggests that both parties saw value in resolving the dispute outside of court.
