In a back-and-forth case between Cisco and Arista related to patents, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency on Friday sided with Arista. CBP completed its review related to the U.S. International Trade Commission Investigation No. 337-TA-944 (Case ‘944) and once again ruled that Arista’s redesigned products do not infringe Cisco patents. Arista may resume importing its redesigned products, which are the subject in that case, into the United States.
Patent Dispute
The CBP had originally ruled in November 2016 that Arista’s products, which contain its redesigned Extensible Operating System (EOS), do not infringe on Cisco patents in the Case ‘944 investigation.
But then in January 2017, CBP revoked its own November 2016 finding at Cisco’s request.Now, CBP has reverted to its earlier November 2016 determination.
“Arista is gratified by the dedication and thoroughness of CBP in reaffirming its original ruling that validates our good faith efforts to address the ITC’s findings,” said Marc Taxay, SVP and general counsel of Arista Networks, in a prepared statement. The parties are still involved in some patent litigation in Case ‘944 with an Administrative Law Judge’s initial determination expected on June 20, 2017 and an ITC final determination expected on September 20, 2017.
“It is noteworthy that the ITC will independently evaluate the redesigned products and is not bound by CBP’s ruling,” writes Arista. “CBP is required to follow the ITC’s final determination.”A timeline of the patent dispute between the two telecom equipment suppliers can be found here.
