The U.S. International Trade Commission on Wednesday banned the import of video-transmitting fitness devices made by Peloton Interactive Inc and iFit Inc, after an internal agency judge ruled last year they were infringing. patents of Dish Network Corp.
In a 2021 lawsuit filed with the ITC, Dish and its unit Sling TV accuse Peloton and iFit of infringing on four patents relating to video streaming technology by importing products that stream home fitness content. These include Peloton bicycles and treadmills and iFit NordicTrack bicycles and ellipticals.
ITC Chief Administrative Judge Clark Cheney sided with Dish in September.
President Joe Biden’s administration has 60 days to review the import ban before it goes into effect, though presidents rarely backtrack on such measures. Parties may also appeal ITC decisions to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which hears patent disputes, after the 60-day review period has expired. .
Representatives for Peloton, iFit and Dish did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Dish and Sling filed lawsuits in Delaware and Texas that were put on hold over the ITC case. Dish had also sued Lululemon Athletica Inc. over its Mirror video streaming device, but the two companies settled their patent dispute in February.
Mr. Cheney found that the streaming-enabled Peloton, Lululemon and iFit products infringed patents related to Dish’s Hopper set-top boxes. Dish said its patents cover adaptive bitrate streaming technology that allows users to stream content from around the world in a timely manner “in the highest possible quality”.
This technology was developed by Move Networks Inc. and was acquired by Dish in 2012, according to court documents.
