The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet is scheduled to hold a hearing today on the increasing use of the International Trade Commission (ITC) by both U.S. and foreign companies to block products under patent infringement claims. Members of Congress are expected to scrutinize the use of the ITC by foreign corporations against American companies.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) frequently submits public interest comments to the ITC regarding its decisions. This includes comments filed last year in response to public input on a request to block Apple Watches from importation into the U.S. due to a dispute over one of the numerous patents involved in such technology.
Josh Landau, CCIA Senior Counsel for Innovation Policy, stated: “The ITC was established to protect American companies from unfair foreign competition, especially from competitors who couldn’t be brought into a U.S. district court. All too often, the ITC is being used against American companies, even though they can easily be sued in district court. Rather than compete in the marketplace on the merits of their technology, competitors—foreign and domestic alike—go to the ITC to try to keep products off the market entirely using a process lacking many of the protections of district court litigation.”
