Creative, a Singapore-based consumer electronics firm, has recently filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission (ITC) alleging that seven top Android phone manufacturers of breaching the company's Zen patents and it wants them to be banned.
According to the complaint filed by the little known company, which produces Zen line of media players, the patent the Android phone makers have violated actually imitates Creative's hierarchical menu system for media playback. Though the company is seeking the ban of these tech firms, in reality it wants money from them for using its concept, Android Police reported.
The complaint filed by Creative with the ITC targets Sony, Samsung, LG, Lenovo, HTC, Motorola, ZTE and BlackBerry. Under debate is the manner in which all these company's display songs as well as albums in a hierarchical menu system. According to Creative, the menu system was invented by it.
About a decade back, Creative filed a similar complaint against Apple and in due course received a $100 million settlement. Meanwhile, provided the ITC accepts the charges leveled by Creative against the Android phone makers, it may possibly result in banning the infringing devices. In other words, several Android phone models manufactured by different companies will face the ban.
The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) has elected to set up an investigation of specific portable electronic devices as well as components thereof, ITC said in a statement. It added that the products under consideration in the investigation include portable electronic devices like smart phones, possessing the facility of playing stored media files chosen by a user from a hierarchical display menu.
At the same time, the ITC clarified that merely setting up the investigation (337-TA-994) does not suggest that it has made any decision on the worthiness of the case. According to the procedure followed in such cases, the Chief Administrative Law Judge of the USITC will now assign the case to one of organization's administrative law judges (ALJ), who will schedule and hold an evidentiary hearing.
The statement pointed out that the ALJ will make a preliminary determination if there is a violation of Section 337. Even this initial determination will be reviewed by the commission. A final determination in the investigation made at the earliest, with the USITC setting a target for completing the probe within 45 days of its institution.
Watch the following video about the types of damages available in a copyright infringement action: