Proprietary Software Doesn't Determine Digital Camera's Country of Origin, CBP Says

The installation of proprietary software isn't enough to determine the country of origin for a digital camera for government procurement purposes, CBP said in a final determination notice. Forward Thinking Systems sought a country of origin decision from CBP on the FleetCam vehicle camera, which "allows companies who purchase the product to watch the drivers that they employee [sic] in real-time, as well as view recorded speeding and other behavior moments." The physical camera is made in China, as was the firmware that allows the camera to be operational, CBP said.

The firmware isn't loaded onto the cameras until it reaches the U.S., the company said. "In order for the FleetCam to be functional and operational, the hardware and the related firmware is installed with the cabling and integrated with the FleetCam software platform," all of which occurs in the U.S. After purchasing the FleetCam hardware, customers pay monthly to use its proprietary software, which is developed in the U.S. "Without the FleetCam software, it is stated that the camera and the related components are not operational," CBP said.

CBP disagreed that the software is what makes the camera operational. "In this case, because the digital camera contains SD cards, it can fully function as a digital video camera by capturing images and recording footage," the agency said. The proprietary software "only customizes the digital cameras" and "does not change the basic identity of the imported digital video cameras because they retain all their functions with the same name, character and use of the imported digital video cameras." As a result, CBP found that "the country of origin of the FleetCam will be China where the main hardware, including the digital cameras and the firmware, is manufactured."