The U.S. International Trade Commission voted to launch an...

on Aug. 24. The complaint alleges violations of Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the import and sale of digital photo frames, image display devices and components that infringe patents asserted by TPL. TPL is requesting exclusion and cease and desist orders. Companies named in the investigation include Action Electronics of Taiwan; Aiptek International, Taiwan; Aluratek, Tustin, Calif.; Audiovox, Happauge, N.Y.; Ceiva Logic, Burbank, Calif.; Circus World Displays, Canada; Coby Electronics, Lake Success, N.Y.; Curtis International, Canada; Digital Spectrum Solutions, Irvine, Calif.; Eastman Kodak Rochester, N.Y.; Mustek Systems, Taiwan; Nextar, La Verne, Calif.; Pandigital, Dublin, Calif.; Royal Consumer Information Products, Somerset, N.J.; Sony Corp., Japan; Sony Corp. of America, New York, N.Y.; Transcend Information, Walnut, Calif.; ViewSonic Corp., Walnut, Calif.; Win Accord, Taiwan; and WinAccord U.S.A., San Jose, Calif. The USITC will assign the case to one of its four administrative law judges, who will schedule and hold an evidentiary hearing, subject to review by the commission, to determine if a violation of Section 337 occurred. The USITC will set a target date for completing the investigation within 45 days, it said. The TPL Group owns Alliacense, which manages IP licensing programs across various industries, and IntellaSys, which develops system-on chip solutions targeting distributed digital media applications, according to the TPL website.