Taoyuan, Taiwan – HTC got hot
under the collar when it learned that Apple filed a fourth patent-infringement
complaint against it before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC).
“HTC is dismayed that Apple has resorted to
competition in the courts rather than the market place,” said HTC general
counsel Grace Lei. “HTC continues to vehemently deny all of Apple’s past and
present claims against it and will continue to protect and defend its own
intellectual property as it has already done this year.”
The latest complaint alleges infringement of
five patents involving user interfaces, motion sensors, and touchscreen
hardware.
HTC stressed that it introduced
its first touchscreen smartphone in June 2002 before Apple’s introduction of
its iPhone in 2007. “As the smartphone market matured, Apple initiated
litigation campaigns against many of its competitors, including HTC,” an HTC
statement said
The other three complaints by
Apple against HTC include twin complaints
by Apple for allegedly infringing on 20 patents related to
the iPhone’s “user interface, underlying architecture and hardware,” Apple
said at the time. Apple filed similar complaints with the U.S. District Court
in Delaware.
