InterDigital (NASDAQ: IDCC) closed at $27.96. IDCC is scheduled to report Q2 EPS after the market close on July 28. August option implied volatility is at 62; September is at 53; near its 26-week average of 58; according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement after EPS.

Rockwell (NYSE: ROK) closed at $39.61. ROK is expected to report Q3 EPS before the market open on July 30. ROK August option implied volatility is at 57, October is at 45; below 26-week of 59 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement after EPS.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

InterDigital (NASDAQ: IDCC - option chain) shares opened higher today after the company announced it has resolved its patent dispute with Samsung Electronics Co. Under the agreement, IDCC has granted Samsung a license that covers 3G wireless handsets through 2012. The license allows IDCC to collect royalties from Samsung. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on IDCC.

IDCC opened this morning at $28.10. So far today the stock has hit a low of $25.35 and a high of $28.98. As of 12:35, IDCC is trading at $28.98, up 0.29 (1.1%). The chart for IDCC looks neutral.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a January bull-put credit spread below the $15 range.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• This year, the International Trade Commission is set to issue rulings on whether Samsung and Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) have infringed patents from InterDigital Inc (NASDAQ: IDCC). If InterDigital, who licenses its patents to iPhone maker Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), wins, fees from the deals could double its revenue over the next few years, the Wall Street Journal contended.
• The Wall Street Journal also reported that Macy's Inc (NYSE: M) is among the retailers that include The Home Depot Inc (NYSE: HD) and Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SHLD) to stop making its monthly disclosure of retail sales.

OTHER PAPERS:

• According to FDA commissioners, the New York Times reported that Baxter International Inc's (NYSE: BAX) critical blood thinner heparin, which has been linked to nearly 20 deaths and whose base was created in China, contained a "possibly counterfeit" ingredient that "mimicked the real drug."
• In his opening arguments in the state of Alaska's lawsuit against Eli Lilly & Company (NYSE: LLY), an attorney for the state alleged the drug maker failed to warn doctors and patients of dangerous side effects associated with its drug Zyprexa, the Associated Press reported.

No matter what your business, it pays to be a patent holder. In the lucrative wireless telecommunications field, it is a very good thing indeed. There is a suburban Philadelphia outfit that ranks with the industry movers and shakers, by virtue of solid demand for its patented wireless technology designs.

InterDigital (NASDAQ: IDCC) develops and licenses circuitry designs, software and other advanced wireless technologies that drive voice and data communications. The firm is a leading contributor to global wireless standards. It holds a strong portfolio of patented technologies, which it licenses to manufacturers of 2G, 2.5G, 3G, and 802 products worldwide. Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) are competitors.

InterDigital pleased investors last week, when it guided Q3 revenues to about $55.5-$56.5 million. That was up from previous guidance of $53.5-$54.5 million and topped the consensus Street view of $54.68 million. Management also announced that it had signed a seven-year licensing agreement to provide technology for Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone. Boenning & Scattergood subsequently reiterated its "market outperform" rating on the issue and boosted its price target to $37.