Congress Needs to Allow Vigorous USITC Enforcement Against Unfair Trade Practices

WASHINGTON—Following notice that the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) upheld an administrative law judge’s determination that U.S. industry was not harmed when Chinese manufacturers infringed on U.S. patents for mobile device displays, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released the following statement from ITIF President Robert D. Atkinson:

The USITC’s ruling in this case is disappointing, but sadly, it is not surprising given the law’s outdated parameters. Congress should expand Section 337 of the 1930 Tariff Act to better address unfair trade practices that China uses to capture market share in advanced industries at America’s expense.

Section 337 allows USITC to bar imports when domestic industries suffer harm due to unfair competition. There is no doubt that U.S. industries face unfair competition in the advanced industries that China has targeted with its state-orchestrated campaign of innovation mercantilism. Rampant intellectual property theft has been an integral component of China’s strategy to dominate these industries. USITC should be flexible enough in its findings of harm to recognize that context. To find that Chinese manufacturers are infringing U.S. patents and yet somehow not harming U.S. industry is to miss the forest for the trees.

The case at hand happens to be about mobile display technology, but the stakes are much broader. America is engaged in an epochal techno-economic battle with China in a wide range of advanced industries that are strategically important for both economic and national security. Existing strategies to counter China’s industrial predation in these sectors are proving to be ineffective.

Reforming Section 337 can change the game by making IP theft and other unfair trade practices less profitable: When China violates global rules or norms to benefit particular firms, they should be denied access to the U.S. market.

For more on this issue, see:

• Robert D. Atkinson, Comments to the US International Trade Commission Regarding Active Matrix OLED Display Panels, December 18, 2024.
• Robert D. Atkinson, “How to Mitigate the Damage From China’s Unfair Trade Practices by Giving USITC Power to Make Them Less Profitable,” November 21, 2022.

Contact: Sydney Mack, [email protected]