IBM, Microsoft, Google, Verizon

HTC Calls for Halt to Sales of iPad, iPhone and iPod in U.S.

May 12, 2010

guardian.co.uk - The fight between Apple and HTC, maker of mobile phones using Google's Android platform, is growing increasingly acrimonious with the Taiwanese firm calling for the regulatory authorities to halt the sale of iPhones, iPads and iPods in the US.

HTC, which makes Google's Nexus one as well as its own-branded HTC Desire, has filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission (ITC) calling for it to "halt the importation and sale of the iPhone, iPad and iPod in the United States."

The move comes after Apple sued HTC back in March, alleging that it had infringed 20 patents relating to "the iPhone's user interface, underlying architecture and hardware".

Calling for sales of a rival's products to be halted is common practice in patent disputes. As part of its legal action against HTC, Apple has also filed a complaint with the ITC, which would see sales of HTC's products - including the Nexus One - halted.

Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, is also embroiled in a patent fight with Apple alleging the iPhone infringes 10 of its patents. It launched the legal action last October after the collapse of long-running negotiations to agree a deal that would have seen Apple pay a licence fee to use technology Nokia developed, which is fundamental to the way a mobile phone works and is already in the iPhone.

Apple hit back in December claiming that Nokia had infringed 13 of its patents, singling out the E71 handset as being particularly egregious.

Nokia then took its complaint to the ITC saying the Californian company had infringed seven Nokia patents across its iPhone, iPod, and Mac products. In March a judge in Delaware ordered a suspension to both the original Nokia lawsuit and Apple's countersuit while the ITC deliberates.

Part of the reason for the current fight between HTC and Apple, meanwhile, is believed to be the fact that in February HTC released handsets which use "pinch-to-zoom" functionality which resembles that of the iPhone.

The legal spat, which could drag on for years, also comes as devices using Google's Android platform are starting to have a serious impact on the market for so-called smartphones.

Earlier this week market research by the NPD Group said Android devices have outsold the iPhone in the US for the first time, although the figures did not include iPod Touch devices. Android phones now make up the second most popular category of smartphone in the US. The market for phones that can send emails, access the web and download applications is still, however, dominated by the BlackBerry, made by Canada's Research In Motion.

Android sales in the UK, meanwhile, have also started to take off, with sales of mobile phones using the software platform increasing fourfold in March, according to recent figures from retail watcher GfK. Almost one in every five smartphones now sold in the UK is Android.

Last month, Microsoft seemed to weigh in to the fight by signing a patent agreement with HTC that provides "broad coverage" under Microsoft's patent portfolio for HTC devices running Android mobile platform. Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft receives royalties from HTC, which created the first smartphones that ran its Windows Mobile operating system ...