The Obama administration has ordered that a proposed ban on the sale and import of certain Apple products be scrapped. The order represents government intervention in a bitter patent row between the iPhone maker and rival Samsung.
In a letter to the US International Trade Commission (ITC), US trade representative Michael Froman said he had decided to disapprove the body's earlier ruling – which would have banned older iPads and iPhones due to patent infringement. As such, Apple would be free to continue to sell the items.
The letter stated that the decision was made after "extensive consultations" and was based on Froman's "review of the various policy considerations … as they relate to the effect on competitive conditions in the US economy and the effect on US consumers".
The move overturns a June decision by the ITC which found in favour of Samsung in an increasingly bitter spat between the two tech firms over patent rights. The trade body concluded that certain Apple products – including older iPhone and iPad models made to run on AT&T and T-Mobile USA networks – had infringed a Samsung patent relating to the ability of devices to transmit services simultaneously through 3G wireless technology. Apple complained that the trade ban imposed by the ITC was inappropriate.
Despite finding against the ban, the Obama administration signalled that Samsung could seek other redress. Froman wrote: "My decision to disapprove this determination does not mean that the patent owner in this case is not entitled to a remedy. On the contrary, the patent owner may continue to pursue its rights through the courts."
The two smartphone makers have lodged a series of legal complaints regarding alleged patent infringements in recent years. Last year, Apple was awarded more than $1bn in damages after Samsung was ruled to have copied critical features of its mobile products.