Roku is infringing nine Universal Electronics patents in “four patent families and two general technology categories: remote control set-up and touchscreen remotes,” alleged Universal in a complaint (in Pacer) Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, California. Roku is "a relative newcomer to home entertainment control,” compared with Universal, which has a 30-year history and owns more than 350 home entertainment patents, said the complaint. Roku and Universal had a “mutually successful previous business relationship,” until Roku “decided to forgo” licensing key Universal IP that’s “prevalent in a number of Roku’s home entertainment products,” it said. Having tried but failed “to reach an acceptable business solution” with Roku, Universal “brings this suit to secure appropriate relief and ensure adequate compensation” for Roku’s unauthorized use of its technology, it said. Roku declined comment.

With safe harbor protection, dominant digital platforms ignore “massive theft and exploitation of creative works on the internet,” 17 minority organizations told House lawmakers Tuesday. The American Black Film Festival, TechLatino, Center for Asian American Media and Multicultural Media Correspondents Association signed the letter to Reps. Judy Chu, D-Calif.; Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.; Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M.; and Cedric Richmond, D-La. They asked the lawmakers to explore “alarming trends” surrounding internet piracy but didn't directly seek legislation.

Sonos has a global “portfolio of 630+ issued patents and 570 applications covering all manner of tech innovation,” spokeswoman Lizzie Manganiello emailed us Wednesday on our query about the company’s plans to commercialize the invention for which it landed a U.S. patent Tuesday on techniques of embedding ads as “structured metadata” in a “digital media playback system” (see 1808280002). “Some of these inventions have made their way into Sonos products, many have not yet, and some never will,” said Manganiello. “We’re not going to comment on our roadmap other than to say we won’t do anything that degrades the consumer listening experience.”

Marketers of low-cost electronics for cars and other applications will be especially vulnerable if the Trump administration imposes a third tranche of 25 percent tariffs on Chinese imports, they commented Monday in docket USTR-2018-0026. Digital Products International (here) and car audio supplier Dual Electronics said their businesses are too profit-poor to absorb higher duties, worrying about increasing prices. Most Dual products sell for less than $100, for “people with older cars to not only have an affordable radio, but also basic connectivity features like Bluetooth,” wrote CEO Jim Braun. “Demand will surely drop for our industry” amid levies, he said. “Supply will be cut back as a result. Jobs will be lost as we, and others, adapt to a smaller business."

CTA and the National Retail Federation praised Monday’s announcement of a preliminary bilateral trade deal between the U.S. and Mexico (see 1808280010) as an encouraging first step, stopping short of endorsement pending details. “A deal that encourages free trade between our countries certainly is welcome,” said Michael Petricone, CTA senior vice president-government and regulatory affairs. If President Donald Trump “really wants a better deal” than the North American Free Trade Agreement, any pact “must support our country's technology leadership,” said Petricone. “We look forward to learning more about the details." NRF thinks “coming to terms with Mexico is an encouraging sign, but threatening to pull out of the existing agreement is not,” said CEO Matthew Shay. “NAFTA supports millions of U.S. jobs and provides hardworking American families access to more products at lower prices. To preserve these benefits and protect complex, sophisticated and efficient supply chains, the administration must bring Canada, an essential trading partner, back to the bargaining table and deliver a trilateral deal.”

A preliminary deal between the U.S. and Mexico amending the North American Free Trade Agreement would extend the minimum copyright term to 75 years beyond the life of the work’s creator, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said Monday. The current copyright term for most music, movies and books extends 70 years. Public Knowledge Global Policy Director Gus Rossi called the proposal "a staggeringly brazen attempt by the entertainment industries to launder unpopular policies through international agreements" that won't survive domestic debate and violates congressional instruction.

Comments are due Monday on a complaint from Sipco requesting a Trade Act Section 337 import ban of wireless mesh networking products that allegedly infringe its patents. Its Aug. 6 complaint to the International Trade Commission alleged Emerson Electric and subsidiaries and Analog Devices and its Linear Technology are among those manufacturing or importing the infringing products, used for monitoring or controlling wireless remote devices in industrial environments by way of a self-healing network. Sipco requests limited exclusion orders and cease and desist orders banning import and sale of Emerson Electric and Analog wireless mesh networking products. Sipco’s petition is "unfounded" and Emerson can't "comment as there is related litigation pending" in U.S District Court in Atlanta, said a spokesperson. Analog didn't comment Friday.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative seeks comment by Oct. 1, rebuttals by Oct. 15 on "notorious markets" for intellectual property theft for its annual list, USTR said in Thursday's Federal Register on docket USTR-2018-0027.

A group of music labels is seeking to have ISP Grande Communications' Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) safe harbor defense claims thrown out. In a docket 17-cv-00365-LY motion (in Pacer) for partial summary judgment filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Austin, the music labels said that DMCA safe harbor requires ISPs to adopt and reasonably implement a policy for terminating repeat copyright infringers' accounts, but that Grande acknowledged it had no such policy for the relevant time period. They said Grande never terminated a repeat infringer until June 2017, after the suit was brought. They said a ruling that Grande isn't entitled to a DMCA safe harbor defense would "significantly streamline" the case and promote a speedier resolution. Grande outside counsel didn't comment Thursday.

Strategies for reducing exposure to U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports (see 1808030028) were discussed on Universal Electronics and GoPro Q2 earnings calls Thursday. Universal is developing plans to "mitigate" such costs by "gradually" shifting production of its "highest-priority or highest-volume" goods "out of China and into existing facilities that we have in Mexico or Brazil,” said CEO Paul Arling. The “vast majority” of Universal’s remote controls are manufactured in its Chinese factories, Arling testified against the tariffs at a July 24 Office of U.S. Trade Representative hearing. Shifting production “will take months to complete, which means that we may incur additional costs during the transition as we expect some of these additional tariffs to be implemented somewhere in late September or probably into October,” said Arling now. GoPro has escaped the tariffs, said CEO Nicholas Woodman. If that changes, Woodman thinks GoPro would be able to shift production easily to “two locations” without tariff exposure. Friday, GoPro closed up 18 percent at $7.05 and Universal gained 26 percent to end the day at $44.95.