May 23 (Reuters) - Chipmaker Micron Technology

owes computer-memory company Netlist ( NLST ) $445 million in

damages for violating Netlist's ( NLST ) patent rights in memory-module

technology for high-performance computing, a U.S. jury said on

Thursday.

Jurors in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District

of Texas agreed with Netlist ( NLST ) that Micron's semiconductor-memory

products infringe two Netlist ( NLST ) patents related to technology for

improving the capacity and performance of memory modules.

The jury also concluded that Micron infringed the patents

willfully, which could lead to a judge multiplying the damages

by up to three times.

Representatives for Micron did not immediately respond to a

request for comment on the verdict.

"We are grateful for the jury's service, and their

recognition of the importance of Netlist's ( NLST ) innovation," Netlist ( NLST )

attorney Jason Sheasby said in a statement.

Netlist ( NLST ) won a $303 million verdict against Samsung in the

same court last year in a related dispute over high-performance

computer memory patents.

Boise, Idaho-based Micron's stock price has surged this year

based on demand for its chips used to power

artificial-intelligence technology. Irvine, California-based

Netlist ( NLST ) sued Micron in 2022, alleging that three of its

semiconductor memory-module lines infringed its patents.

Micron denied the allegations and raised several defenses,

including arguments that the patents were invalid.

A U.S. Patent and Trademark Office tribunal invalidated one

of the patents in April, which could eventually reduce the size

of the verdict.