Wi-LAN president and CEO Jim Skippen. (Darren Brown, OBJ)

Patent licensing firm Wi-LAN Inc. signed a slew of new deals in its second quarter for both its wireless and V-chip parental control technologies, the company said today.

The Ottawa-based company said it signed up 10 wireless licensees and seven V-chip agreements in the quarter ended April 30, including six new deals since its last announcement on April 16.

Wi-LAN said it granted running royalty wireless licences to California-based Portable One Inc. and Grace Digital Inc., Virginia's StarMesh Technologies LLC and another company that asked to remain unnamed, and inked V-chip licence agreements with Belgium's Artec Electronics Co. Ltd. and Taiwanese set-top box supplier Zinwell International Ltd.

The company has now signed 21 wireless licensees and 82 V-chip licensees to date.

"Seventeen companies signing licences in a signle quarter represents a record for our company," said Wi-LAN chief executive Jim Skippen in a statement. "These results further demonstrate our ability to achieve licence agreements through negotiation, reinforce the value of our intellectual property and will increase our recurring revenues in due course."

Wi-LAN also said it signed a new running royalty licensing agreement early in the third quarter with Westlake Village, Calif.-based Xirrus Inc. for various wireless technology patents.

The company has a portfolio of more than 290 issued or pending patents.