Old iPhone and iPad bans are rejected

According to a report from the Wall Street Journal on August 4th, Beijing time, the Obama administration rejected the ruling of the US International Trade Commission (ITC) that previously prohibited imports and sold some iPhones and iPads in the United States. This is also the first time that the U.S. government has overturned ITC's ruling since 1987.

Michael Froman, the U.S. trade representative who overruled the ITC ruling, said that he made the above decision because the ruling would give patent holders too much competitive advantage and may be for consumers as well. The competitive environment in the U.S. economy poses a potential hazard.

Froman said that Samsung can continue to use legal channels to ensure that its patent rights are maintained.

In June of this year, ITC ruled that Apple infringed one of Samsung’s patents through some of the older iPhones and iPads sold by mobile operator AT&T. Therefore, it banned the import of infringing products into the US market. Considering that the iPhone and iPad tablet are assembled in China, this ban also means that Apple has lost the right to sell the above products in the US market. This is also Samsung's rare victory in the global patent litigation with Apple.

This ban has attracted the attention of the US anti-monopoly law enforcement agencies and triggered a strong lobbying campaign by Apple’s US technology company to the Obama administration.

Those who are critical of the ITC ruling questioned whether the sales ban on competitors’ products involving patent disputes should be sought from the industry standards setting body, as some patents may be standard-essential patents. The holders of such patents are considered to be authorized to competitors.

Apple and other technology companies complained to trade representatives that ITC’s ban was inappropriate because Samsung had promised to grant a fair license for standard basic patents related to wireless devices. However, Samsung imposed stringent requirements on licensing. Samsung insists that the company has authorized Apple, but Apple does not want to spend money to purchase its patent license.

Samsung and other U.S. technology companies have not fulfilled their commitments to industry standard-setting bodies, which would lead patent holders to seek import bans or enforce court injunctions to defend patent rights. They stated that overturning ITC's decision will lead to decades of reconciliation process and weaken the value of patents and the enthusiasm of cracking down on innovation.

An Apple spokesperson said: "We welcome the government's move to support innovation in this historic case. Samsung's abuse of the patent system through this practice is wrong."

Samsung spokesperson said that he was disappointed with the Obama administration’s decision. The spokesperson said: "The ITC's ruling was properly aware that Samsung has been adhering to goodwill patent negotiation negotiations, but Apple is reluctant to accept a fee."

The actions of the Obama administration also led to the case becoming one of the most dramatic cases in the history of ITC. Apple failed in ITC's trial and its related products were banned from sale. This has hit Apple’s powerful public opinion that Samsung has copied its products.

At the same time, Samsung was originally scheduled to face another ITC ruling on August 9 to determine whether Samsung’s mobile phones and tablet computers infringe Apple’s patents. People familiar with the operation of ITC said that the Obama administration’s actions on Saturday may postpone the ITC's verdict.

The Apple Samsung patent dispute handled by ITC is only part of the global lawsuit battle between the two companies. Since Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007, and Samsung has launched products with similar functions, the two companies have turned from long-term partners to uncompromising competitors.