Obama Administration Vetoes Import Ban on Select Apple Devices

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By Sean Fitz-Gerald2013-08-03 21:51:54 UTC

The Obama administration on Saturday slammed the door on a proposed ban of Apple products, vetoing a United States International Trade Commission decision that was initially viewed as an unexpected patent battle victory for Samsung.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael B. G. Froman executed the veto in a letter penned to the USITC's chairman, Irving A. Williamson. The disapproval notice is a direct response to the USITC's ruling, which was ordered in June and, according to All Things D , granted Samsung’s request for an import ban on older iPhones and iPads (i.e., AT&T iPhones prior to the iPhone 4S and the iPad 2 and earlier) which it found to infringe upon one of Samsung’s standards-essential patents.

See also: Report: Samsung Supplying Chips for Apple's 2015 iOS Devices

The letter was posted in full on Saturday afternoon to the Office of the United States Trade Representative's website. Read the full text below:

"After extensive consultation with the agencies of the Trade Policy Staff Committee and the Trade Policy Review Group, as well as other interested agencies and persons, I have decided to disapprove the USITC's determination to issue an exclusion order and cease and desist order in their investigation," Froman wrote.

He said that standards-essential patents were being used to gain undue leverage and engage in patent hold-ups. Froman did, however, note that Samsung could continue to pursue its rights through the courts.

"This policy decision is not an endorsement or criticism of the Commission's decision or analysis," he wrote. "My decision to disapprove this determination does not mean that the patent holder in this case is not entitled to a remedy."

The reversal, per the Wall Street Journal , marks the first time since 1987 that a presidential administration has vetoed a USITC product ban.

See also: Everything You Need to Know About Apple v. Samsung in 97 Seconds

"We are disappointed that the U.S. Trade Representative has decided to set aside the exclusion order issued by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC)," a Samsung spokesperson told Mashable. "The ITC’s decision correctly recognized that Samsung has been negotiating in good faith and that Apple remains unwilling to take a license."

Apple was reportedly locked into an ongoing appeals process following the USITC's June order. The second ruling was slated for Aug. 9.

At time of writing, Apple had not responded to Mashable's request for comment.

The Obama administration's veto comes at the tail end of a few years' worth of legal battles between the two tech titans. After the debut of the iPhone in 2007, Apple first locked horns with the Korean company in 2011, alleging that Samsung infringed on seven of Apple's patents with 12 Samsung products. Competing patent claims have since been thrown at both parties.

Read the above document to learn more, and let us know what you think about the Obama Administration's decision in the comments below.

Image: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Topics: apple, Barack Obama, International Trade Commission, iPad, iPhone, Mobile, Obama Adminstration, patents, Politics, samsung, Tech, U.S., USITC, World