Epson wins ink ruling; ITC recommends banning third-party imports

While we're still not sure whether refilling those empty ink cartridges is indeed a criminal act (or a waste of money), Epson has taken one more step towards forcing the average consumer to purchase name-brand carts at sky-high prices. Of course, Epson would have you believe that it's simply protecting its patents, but in a recent preliminary ruling that deemed some 24 suppliers that "import and sell Epson-compatible cartridges" as in the wrong, it could spell higher prices and less choices for consumers with Epson printers. Nevertheless, if the final ruling (set for July 30th) follows the same path as this one, a "general exclusion order on the cartridges" would be enforced, barring any future imports of the presumably lower-cost alternatives into the States. It looks we're almost down to two choices when it comes to printing: break the law, or break the bank?

[Via TGDaily]