The White House has officially overturned a pending ban by the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) that would have prohibited sales and imports of the AT&T versions of the iPhones and iPads under U.S. Patent No. 7,706,348. The move, which was thought to have little chance of success, represents the first veto of a USITC decision since 1987. The decision to veto the exclusion of Apple products “in the public interest” was made pursuant to Presidential authority under the Tariff Act of 1930, 19 U.S.C. 1337(j), which has been exercised only on five prior occasions.

read more…