HTC Sues Apple Back Over Patent Infringement
Legal battles going on at leading smartphone makers.
In early March, Apple launched a lawsuit against HTC claiming that the Taiwanese phone maker infringes on 20 patents "related to the iPhone's user interface, underlying architecture, and hardware."
HTC responded a day later with its own opinion that the lawsuits won't have any sort of short term impact to business and today we see what the company's been cooking up with its legal team.
Today HTC Corporation today took legal action against Apple Inc., filing a complaint with the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) to halt the importation and sale of the iPhone, iPad and iPod in the United States.
"As the innovator of the original Windows Mobile PocketPC Phone Edition in 2002 and the first Android smartphone in 2008, HTC believes the industry should be driven by healthy competition and innovation that offer consumers the best, most accessible mobile experiences possible," said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of North America, HTC Corporation. "We are taking this action against Apple to protect our intellectual property, our industry partners, and most importantly our customers that use HTC phones."
Gizmodo has on display the five patents that HTC alleges that Apple infringes upon, which deal with power management and phone dialers. Basically, both companies are now pointing fingers at each other. We doubt that this will lead to a ban on the sale of iPhone OS devices or an end to HTC smartphones, so expect some kind of legal resolution between the two companies eventually.
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Everyone who has an HTC phone better lock their doors...
Everyone who has an HTC phone better lock their doors...
I live in GA, and I own a lot of guns...If someone wants to get shot over a phone, they can be my guest.
dame how many time apple sued someone or someone sued apple?
Don't bother counting. Though it seems like as if Apple are under quite a bit of pressure. Multiple lawsuits slam, including the double-whammy of anti-trust [s]anal[/s]probe, seems like as if Jobs may need a new liver transplant from the stress he may be under.
Oh wait, he's god so never mind.
The only ones that benefit from this dance are the lawyers.
Well this might be one way to hurt their hardware sales, but this is not the silver bullet to hit Apple where it hurts. If companies like Dell, HP, etc want to start messing with Apple they need to start shipping "OSX" ready laptops and desktops to bring Apple into a hardware price war. Ship with with Linux or something just "OSX" ready. Somehow at the 500 price point everyone can afford a computer, multiply the OSX user base by 100 in a really short time, it would cause some problems. Granted, this might upset Microsoft, turn a lot more people on to iTunes etc, but at least it may make Apple a little more builder friendly.
I do hope this makes Apple change its "You can do what you want, just do it my way" attitude.
The only winners are the lawyers for essentially pointless lawsuits...
Go HTC!
Go Nokia!
Tho I dont see it happening, I would laugh so hard if the import of iPhones, iPads, and iPhones was banned in the US.
Silly Apple, Patents are meant to be used as shields against other companies, your only supposed to go after the competition if you can't stay in the business because of the violations against your patents, prior art will kick your ass Apple; believe it or not! corners could be rounded before Apple.
1984 is here and Jobs is on the projector.
Hey, look! HTC's patents actually hold water. Unlike Apple's "GUI for mobile devices" and "underclocking for mobile devices" patents. Just by adding "for mobile devices" doesn't mean you invented the darn thing!
Old Jewish saying, "Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth", wait, Apple and HTC are not from the Middle East.
suing a company who has been making smartphones longer then you just didn't seem like a good idea to me
What Apple is doing is a clear case of corporate strong-arm tactics, I'm glad HTC is counter suing. Think about it, why isn't Apple suing Google directly? Or all the other android phone makers? They just want to take down the most innovative one.
This will not stop me from getting the HTC EVO next month! Welcome to second place iPhone!
I say this while typing it on a macbook pro: Jobs is a lunatic. He is completely out of his mind. He needs to eat some freakin meat so his biochemical responses in his brain can start firing right.. but that ship sailed decades ago.. At any rate, Jobs is the entire reason this is going on. He is just spiteful at this point, probably sees this as a way to stop the one thing he couldnt in the early 80's with microsoft. Simply put, "Over compensating" -- Jobs feels he invented the "Smartphone" and as such, doesnt want a Microsoft like situation all over again. In closing, never try to predict a lunatic, you'll fail. Maybe he'll get ousted again when the legal fees mount to high for share holders, or they get nailed on a BIG patent problem themselves cause of Job's attack on everyone.
Well this might be one way to hurt their hardware sales, but this is not the silver bullet to hit Apple where it hurts. If companies like Dell, HP, etc want to start messing with Apple they need to start shipping "OSX" ready laptops and desktops to bring Apple into a hardware price war. Ship with with Linux or something just "OSX" ready. Somehow at the 500 price point everyone can afford a computer, multiply the OSX user base by 100 in a really short time, it would cause some problems. Granted, this might upset Microsoft, turn a lot more people on to iTunes etc, but at least it may make Apple a little more builder friendly.
Yeah... that would just cause Dell and HP to get sued... and Apple would easily win that one.
I'm waiting to see what the other H does. HP, with their newly beefed-up patent portfolio... there's gotta be a few that Apple infringed upon in there, right?
When and if HP joins the party, I'll have my finger ready to pop that bubbly AAPL stock.
@tipoo
Apple can't afford to eliminate all viable competitors (Android OS) in the smart phone market or they risk gaining a monopoly and then totally losing the patent war. Some of it is FUD and some of it is just posturing. Whichever way the court battle leans expect money to go that way to end the fight before a court decision is made.
LOL. People think Apple stock is going to drop because they were counter-sued by HTC? Hey, I really don't agree with the whole idea of patenting a UI (or patenting most things) but you can't help but recognize how amazingly similar HTC's Sense UI looks compared to the iPhone UI. I mean come on, let's be honest here.
This is all just corporate chest thumping going on here. Anyone who honestly thinks this is going to lead to any injunctions by either company are just plain crazy. More like wishful thinking. This is the same situation with AMD and Intel. They are both infringing on each others patents and both suing each other. All these mobile phone companies are infringing each others patents.
How about how similar the iPhone os looks to the Palm and Balck berry oses. The same home screens, the others just allowed a lot more usefull functions from there.
You can't patent generic software ideas. Think about it. You don't see ID Software suing Valve for stealing ideas. If they did, in court it would be indefensible!
Apple's just being a bully and trying to bleed other companies out with legal fees. Palm's probably suffered the most from their bullshit. People who buy products from a company as horribly unethical as Apple disgust me.
Apple bit off more than they can chew
You can't patent generic software ideas. Think about it. You don't see ID Software suing Valve for stealing ideas. If they did, in court it would be indefensible!Apple's just being a bully and trying to bleed other companies out with legal fees. Palm's probably suffered the most from their bullshit. People who buy products from a company as horribly unethical as Apple disgust me.
Oh god you've got to be kidding. Seriously? Do you not know how much of a corporate bully Microsoft is/was? You must live in a bubble. Apple isn't exactly rosy but neither are Microsoft or most of the big players in the market. Everyone sues each other. Wow oh wow to make such stupid statements such as "people who buy Apple products disgust me" is just downright hilarious.
LOL. People think Apple stock is going to drop because they were counter-sued by HTC? Hey, I really don't agree with the whole idea of patenting a UI (or patenting most things) but you can't help but recognize how amazingly similar HTC's Sense UI looks compared to the iPhone UI. I mean come on, let's be honest here. This is all just corporate chest thumping going on here. Anyone who honestly thinks this is going to lead to any injunctions by either company are just plain crazy. More like wishful thinking. This is the same situation with AMD and Intel. They are both infringing on each others patents and both suing each other. All these mobile phone companies are infringing each others patents.
So what? I came up with a similar idea before smartphones even existed. Same with GeoLocation.
I bet... about a million other nerds did too.
The patent system sucks, however 'similar' you think they look. Refer to fulle's post for the rest of my argument.
Whoever thought that Jobs and Gates would trade places? All those old sayings are true, power corrupts.....
Omg, nokia sues apple..twice, then apple sues HTC, oh lovely n97 of mine, you thrump iphone every time xD
Oh god you've got to be kidding. Seriously? Do you not know how much of a corporate bully Microsoft is/was? You must live in a bubble.
One big difference, Microsoft doesn't try to seem like a angel that can do no wrong and have products are made by the god's themselves.
what about medal of honor suing call of duty for churning out similar games when you guys are talking software similarities??
what about medal of honor suing call of duty for churning out similar games when you guys are talking software similarities??