Apple faced the prospect of a second ban on sales of its iPhone, as the US International Trade Commission (ITC) moved to reconsider an earlier decision not to block shipments despite evidence of patent infringement, Reuters reported.
In October, an ITC judge found Apple had infringed on one Qualcomm patent, but cited public interest factors in advising against an exclusion order.
However, the agency told Reuters it was set to review both elements of the decision.
The ITC will weigh how long it would take Apple to come up with a new design which doesn’t infringe on Qualcomm’s technology; national security implications associated with a ban; and the feasibility of implementing an import ban, the news outlet noted.
It will issue a final ruling by 19 February.
The news came as Qualcomm pressed Chinese officials to expand a ban announced earlier this week blocking the import and sale of several older iPhone models. Financial Times reported Qualcomm asked a court to expand the list to the newest iPhone models, XS; XS Max; and XR, to the list.
Apple said the initial ruling would not affect its sales in China since the order only covered technology used in an older version of its operating system. It added it will pursue “all our legal options” to fight the ban in court.
Comments