ITC Patent Jurisdiction: Roku’s Petition and Contreras’ Critique

by Dennis Crouch

Roku, Inc. has asked the Supreme Court to review 2024 Federal Circuit decision affirming the US International Trade Commission’s (ITC) finding of a Section 337 violation based on infringement of a TV-remote patent owned by Universal Electronics, Inc. (UEI). US10593196 (method of configuring user interfaces on home theater devices to control other appliances).

The petition focuses on the ITC’s “domestic industry” requirement, and the level of nexus required between substantial domestic investment, the scope of the asserted patent, and any articles that embody the patented invention.  The case invites a broader reconsideration of the ITC’s role in patent disputes, including its near-automatic issuance of exclusion orders against adjudged infringers.

• Roku Petition
• Appendix to the Petition (Including Lower Court Rulings)

Roku’s petition presents two questions:  

1. Did the ITC exceed its Section 337 authority by finding the entirety of complainant’s investments in unpatented, multi-purpose software to be “with respect to the articles protected by the patent?”
2. Did the ITC exceed its Section 337 authority by failing to consider whether the complainant’s investments in unpatented, multi-purpose software were “substantial” “with respect to the articles protected by the patent?”

Background on the ITC and Section 337: The ITC is an independent branch of the US government charged with protecting U.S.

Continue reading ITC Patent Jurisdiction: Roku’s Petition and Contreras’ Critique at Patently-O.