Apple, Samsung, Amazon, and a slew of other tech companies appear to be in the midst of a patent war against an Irish company called Neodron. It has prompted the United States International Trade Commission to launch an investigation if the companies involved have indeed committed patent violations involving capacitive touch-controlled devices.
In a recent Reuters report, the complaint was allegedly filed in February by Neodron claiming Apple and other companies are infringing patents owned by Neodron, all related to touch-based devices. The Dublin-based company claims that violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 have been committed regarding the importation and sale of capacitive touch-controlled devices, including computers and mobile phones. The complainant has requested the USITC to issue a cease and desist and limited exclusion orders.
The companies to be investigated by the ITC include the world's biggest and renowned tech companies, including Sony, Samsung, Motorola, Microsoft, LG Electronics, ASUS, Apple, and Amazon. The US trade body will investigate whether or not there have been violations under section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.
According to ITC, the launch of the investigation does not mean that the companies involved are guilty and no decision has been made on the merits of the case. What Neudron aims is to ultimately acquire cease and desist orders, as well as a limited exclusion order.
The USITC also announced a similar case last year in May, which also invloved touch-controlled devices. However, Apple was not named as one of the companies being investigated. The new investigation, meanwhile, will be assigned to an administrative law judge who will decide when the evidentiary hearing will commence.
While some tech spectators have taken the case seriously, others are calling Neodron "patent trolls." An article posted in the Washington Times described the Irish company as "financial wheeler-dealers masquerading as a company."
The article notes that Neodron, which was incorporated in 2018 in Ireland, wants the USITC to ban a huge swath of mobile devices from the market. Like the recent complaint, the Irish company alleges that its patents have been infringed by Motorola, Microsoft, HP, Dell, Amazon, and several others -- all of which have a massive presence across the globe.
It's worth noting that Neodron, according to the same article, has not created its own products or invented innovative tech. The company merely acquired some patents and appears to have filed a complaint in ITC to get a huge settlement.
