The U.S. International Trade Commission has announced it is investigating Qualcomm’s claims that Apple devices violate its patents, the latest front in Apple’s ongoing legal war with the chipmaker. Qualcomm asked the ITC to ban imports of iPhones into the U.S. in May, and the commission said it will set a target date for the completion of the investigation within 45 days. While the back and forth in the courts could take years, the ITC promised to “make a final determination in the investigation at the earliest practicable time.” Apple didn’t comment on the development, but CEO Tim Cook has previously said, “I don’t believe that anyone is going to decide to enjoin the iPhone based on that. I think that there’s plenty of case law around that subject, but we shall see.”
