Taiwan firm hopeful as US to probe its claim against Apple

A Taiwanese company said Friday it hoped for a positive outcome after US trade authorities agreed to investigate a patent infringement claim it filed against Apple over its touchscreen gadgets.

Touchpad design house Elan Microelectronics Corps filed the complaint to the US International Trade Commission (ITC) in March before the launch of the iPad, Apple's much-anticipated touchscreen tablet computer.

The firm claimed Apple was infringing on its patent regarding touch-sensitive input devices with the ability to detect the simultaneous presence of two or more fingers.

"The ITC has accepted our request to look into the infringement claim and we hope for a positive outcome from its investigation," said Dennis Liu, Elan's spokesman.

The probe is expected to take between 12 and 15 months, according to Elan, which last year filed a lawsuit against Apple in a California district court which is still reviewing the case.

Elan claimed the patent is violated in the iPhone, iPod Touch, MacBook and Magic Mouse products as well as the iPad.

It demanded that the ITC bar Apple from importing into the United States any of the products, which are manufactured overseas, and prevent it from selling in the United States any of the products it has already imported.

The ITC said in a statement, which announced the investigation to the public, that it has not yet made any decision on the merits of the case.

(c) 2010 AFP