In a recent editorial published in the Wall Street Journal, Randal S. Milch – executive vice president of public policy and general counsel of Verizon Communications – effectively petitioned U.S. President Obama to intervene in an ongoing matter involving the ITC.
By early August, the Obama administration must decide whether to veto the ITC’s decision to bar the devices alleged to have infringed on a Samsung patent. Should it?
The ITC recently determined that AT&T versions of the iPhone 4, 3GS and 3G infringe on patents owned by Samsung. As a result, these devices must be banned from sale by August 3rd, 2013.
Verizon, however, is hoping President Obama will curtail this looming product sale ban. Specifically, Verizon’s top legal eagle would like to see the Obama administration veto the ITC’s decision, even though a sitting president hasn’t done so since 1987.
“Patent litigation at the ITC — where the only remedy is to keep products from the American public — is too high-stakes a game for patent disputes,” Milch explained. “The fact that the ITC’s intellectual-property dispute docket has nearly quadrupled over 15 years only raises the stakes further. Smartphone patent litigation accounts for a substantial share of that increase.”
To read the complete editorial from The Wall Street Journal, click here.
