The International Trade Administration has issued a notice announcing that it is aligning the final determination in the countervailing duty investigation of aluminum extrusions from China with the final determination in the companion antidumping duty investigation.
Vizio’s TVs infringed parts of one of four LG patents at the heart of a legal battle between the companies, an International Trade Commission judge ruled in a preliminary decision. Administrative Law Judge James Gildea said Vizio violated four claims of a patent granted Zenith’s Sol Cherrick in 1996 that covers a TV whose hardware/firmware can be remotely disabled by a series of transmitted codes. Among the claims that Vizio was held to have infringed was one describing a TV with a character generator that could produce a single hue over the entire display. Another claim was a method for disabling closed captioning. Gildea ruled that Vizio didn’t infringe claims in three other patents, including one granted LG Electronics’ In Hoon Kim in 2006 that covers channel tuning of digital TV. Among the claims that Vizio didn’t infringe was one for making a decision to search a previously stored channel map, Gildea said. LG filed the ITC complaint this year, alleging that Vizio’s sets violated four TV-related patents granted 1996-2006 and asking to commission to bar Vizio from importing infringing TVs. Vizio countered by filing a complaint with the ITC against LG in July, alleging that LG’s TVs violated its portfolio of six QAM-related patents that it acquired from Motorola in April 2009. The patents were granted to General Instrument 1993-1997 and covered a range of QAM technology. Vizio officials weren’t available to comment.
The International Trade Administration has made a final affirmative antidumping duty determination that certain seamless carbon and alloy steel standard, line, and pressure pipe from China is being, or is likely to be, sold in the U.S. at less than fair value.
The International Trade Administration has made a final affirmative countervailing duty determination that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of certain seamless carbon and alloy steel standard, line, and pressure pipe from China.
Bipartisan Senate legislation to fight online piracy would give the Justice Department tools to track and shut down websites providing access to movies, music and other intellectual property in violation of copyright laws. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Ranking Member Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, introduced the measure Monday. The bill was co-sponsored by Sens. Herb Kohl, D-Wis.; Arlen Specter, D-Pa.; Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.; Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and George Voinovich, R-Ohio. The Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act would allow DOJ to crack down faster on websites, authorize the department to file civil lawsuits against domain names and allow it to seek preliminary court orders declaring that they provide infringing material. Justice would have to publish notice of the actions immediately and “meet clear criteria that focus on the sites’ substantial and repeated role in online piracy or counterfeiting,” the Judiciary Committee said Monday. The bill would allow a domain-name owner or site operator to petition the court to lift the order. The bill would allow only the Justice Department to file an action and give federal courts the “final say about whether a particular site would be cut off from supportive services,” the committee said. “Each year, online piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods cost American businesses billions of dollars, and result in hundreds of thousands of lost jobs,” Leahy said. The bill “is critical to our continued fight against online piracy and counterfeiting,” Hatch said. “By coordinating our efforts with industry stakeholders and law enforcement officials, we'll be better able to target those who are profiting from illegal activity.” The MPAA supported the legislation, calling it “a major step forward in efforts to combat … a growing threat to the financial health and welfare of the men and women who work in our industry."
The International Trade Administration is issuing a countervailing duty order on magnesia carbon bricks from China.
Bipartisan Senate legislation to fight online piracy would give the Justice Department tools to track and shut down websites providing access to movies, music and other intellectual property in violation of copyright laws. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Ranking Member Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, introduced the measure Monday. The bill was co-sponsored by Sens. Herb Kohl, D-Wis.; Arlen Specter, D-Pa.; Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.; Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and George Voinovich, R-Ohio. The Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act would allow DOJ to crack down faster on websites, authorize the department to file civil lawsuits against domain names and allow it to seek preliminary court orders declaring that they provide infringing material. Justice would have to publish notice of the actions immediately and “meet clear criteria that focus on the sites’ substantial and repeated role in online piracy or counterfeiting,” the Judiciary Committee said Monday. The bill would allow a domain-name owner or site operator to petition the court to lift the order. The bill would allow only the Justice Department to file an action and give federal courts the “final say about whether a particular site would be cut off from supportive services,” the committee said. “Each year, online piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods cost American businesses billions of dollars, and result in hundreds of thousands of lost jobs,” Leahy said. The bill “is critical to our continued fight against online piracy and counterfeiting,” Hatch said. “By coordinating our efforts with industry stakeholders and law enforcement officials, we'll be better able to target those who are profiting from illegal activity.” The MPAA supported the legislation, calling it “a major step forward in efforts to combat … a growing threat to the financial health and welfare of the men and women who work in our industry.” The Copyright Alliance also praised the bill. “Internet sites dedicated to facilitating infringement, while profiting from selling advertising or ’subscriptions’ to unlicensed content, are clearly operating outside the law,” said Executive Director Patrick Ross. Others voiced reservations. The Leahy bill has “some troubling political and technical implications, particularly as it attempts to extend U.S. control over the worldwide Internet addressing system,” said Public Knowledge Deputy Legal Director Sherwin Siy. “Domestically, we are concerned that the bill would establish an Internet black list of sites that the Justice Department thinks are ‘pirate’ sites but against which it hasn’t taken action,” Siy said. “We are also concerned about some of the vague definitions of what constitutes an infringing site and of the level of proof needed."
Puerto Rico’s Chief Information Officer Juan Rodriguez announced the launch of the territory’s first islandwide map of broadband availability. The Web-based map offers a preliminary view of the broadband landscape in Puerto Rico. Called BroadbandStat, the application is funded by a federal stimulus grant and is run by the Connect Puerto Rico program under Rodriguez’s office. Eight of the 16 broadband service providers in Puerto Rico are participating in the mapping project’s first phase, but only four are represented on the map. “With this unveiling of the preliminary map, we seek to receive public feedback and encourage provider participation,” Rodríguez said.
The International Trade Administration has issued an antidumping duty order on magnesia carbon bricks from Mexico.
The International Trade Administration has issued an antidumping duty order on magnesia carbon bricks from China.