In In what seems like a typical case of tit for tat, the Android phone maker HTC has sued Apple for infringing upon nine of its patents. It is intersecting to note that HTC has received all nine of these patents from Google. Even Google had taken ownership of the patents less than a year ago, with four of the patents originating from Motorola Inc. This lawsuit by HTC marks a turning point for Google, which has been heavily criticized for inadequately protecting Android partners against legal attack.
In a statement Grace Lei, HTC's general counsel said, HTC will continue to protect its patented inventions against infringement from Apple until such infringement stops. While responding to HTCs lawsuit, Apple said, We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours.
HTCs lawsuit contends the Mac computer, iPhone, iPod, iPad, iCloud and iTunes are infringing patents for a way to upgrade software wirelessly; a way to transfer data between a microprocessor and a support chip; a method to store user preferences, and a way to provide consistent contact between application software and a radio modem. The lawsuit has been filed in the Federal court of Delaware.
Apple has been contending that Googles Android OS is a copy of the iPhone. Of course, Google and its Android partners firmly oppose Apples contention. Googles new aggressiveness in defending its partners could turn out to be a game-changing move. The likes of HTC and Samsung could be in a much better position to defend themselves against the legal mechanisms of Apple and even Microsoft. Microsoft has been receiving money from the likes of HTC for every Android device shipped.
With new patent infringement lawsuits being filed on a regular basis, hi-tech companies have been forced to seek extra protection by acquiring patents from elsewhere. Google, which had been issued fewer than 1,000 patents as of the start of this year, had said it would build a stronger patent portfolio as a defence against intellectual property lawsuits. It made good on that promise by splurging on its biggest deal ever, acquiring Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc for $12.5 billion. Analysts believe that this deal was an attempt to buy insurance against increasingly aggressive legal attacks from rivals.
The global smartphone market is projected, by researcher IHS Inc., to be $206.6 billion this year. So the stakes are really high for all the major tech companies. With Chinas search giant Baidu becoming increasingly active in the mobile OS space, Google needs to all it can to protect its Android turf.
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