A jury on Wednesday hit Marvell Technology Group with a billion-dollar verdict, ruling that the US chip maker "willfully" infringed on patents held by Carnegie Mellon University.

Northern California-based Marvell violated CMU patents on technology that increase the accuracy of reading data from high-speed magnetic disks, according to a verdict delivered in federal court in the state of Pennsylvania, where the university is based.

Jurors rejected the argument by Marvell that the CMU patents were not valid and ordered Marvel to pay $1.1 billion in damages, according to the K&L Gates legal team that represented the university at trial.

The award could be tripled based on a finding by jurors that the patent infringement by Marvell and subsidiary Marvell Semiconductor was "willful."

"We take special pride in this trial victory because of the decades-long relationship between our firm and Carnegie Mellon University and our deep appreciation for CMU's path breaking and leadership role in the Information Age," said law firm partner Peter Kalis.

Marvell did not respond to an AFP request for comment.