Apple files appeal to broaden ITC import ban against Samsung

In a court filing made last week, it was revealed that Apple has officially lodged an appeal of unfavorable decisions made by the U.S. International Trade Commission in its decision to levy an import ban against certain Samsung products.

Despite the U.S. government shutdown, the ITC published Apple's Notice of Appeal and Petition for Review, which was submitted to the trade body last Wednesday and discovered on Tuesday by FOSS Patents' Florian Mueller.

With the Federal Circuit appeal, Apple is looking to not only reverse certain ITC decisions that cleared Samsung to create design workarounds to avoid the ban, but could broaden the decision to include products that are currently on sale in the U.S.

When Apple first won the embargo in August, the ITC found infringement on two patents. If Apple wins the appeal, it is plausible that three additional patents could be found infringed, as well as modified claims on patents already asserted. This may broaden the import ban to include newer Samsung devices.

As such, Mueller notes that the appeal will likely focus on patents pertinent to current or future products, while leaving out arguments for designs that are easily worked around or no longer apply to the Korean company's lineup. The existing ban has been in effect since Oct. 8 and largely applies to discontinued models.

When the ITC resumes operations after the government shutdown, Samsung will no doubt make an appeal of its own. The company had to wait for the Presidential review period to complete before filing because a veto would have obviated an appeal. Unlike Samsung's ITC ban against Apple, which President Barack Obama vetoed in August, no such relief was handed down in the most recent embargo.