Demant

Legal Proceedings Report • Jan 7, 2016

Company announcement no ²⁰¹⁶‐^{01 7} January ²⁰¹⁶

GN ReSound and William Demant settle all patent disputes

GN ReSound A/S and William Demant Holding A/S have today reached an agreement to settle all pa‐ tent disputes between the two companies, thereby terminating all patent litigations – both in Eu‐ rope, including Denmark, and in North America – with immediate effect.

The settlement includes broad‐based cross‐licensing of 15 different patents related to historic, pend‐ ing as well as some potential future disputes. The considerations leading to the settlement have cre‐ ated a better understanding of how to solve possible future disputes. The details of the financial ar‐ rangement are undisclosed. However, the settlement of the 15 patents includes an annual net li‐ cense payment to William Demant, which will have no material financial impact on the results of ei‐ ther party.

"Respect for – and recognition of – intellectual property and patents is critically important in any re‐ search‐based industry. We are pleased that we have been able to make a larger, broad‐based patent agreement in a mutually beneficial way and that we can now focus all our energy on serving our cus‐ tomers and growing our business," say Anders Hedegaard, CEO of GN ReSound, and Søren Nielsen, COO of William Demant, in a joint statement.

Further information: Søren Nielsen, COO Phone +45 3917 7300 www.demant.com

Other contacts: Søren B. Andersson, VP IR