HTC not keen to settle with Apple despite Samsung loss

HTC chairperson Cher Wang has cleared In a recent statement that the company does not have any intentions of settling with Apple, despite the latter’s big win in its lawsuit with Samsung Electronics. Digitimes now reports that according to Wang, the company has great skills in innovation and has the confidence to face legal lawsuits with the Cupertino giant. She added further that, “Samsung’s loss does not mean the failure of the entire Google Android ecosystem.”

Both Apple and HTC have been at loggerheads over a host of unresolved patents. In June this year, the lawsuit between the two companies took a turn for the worse when Apple presented a motion for dismissal of five HTC patents, which the judge granted. Apple raised this motion in relation to the fact that the five patents that HTC presented were not actually its to begin with. The five patents in question include: U.S. Patent No. 6,473,006, U.S. Patent No. 6,708,214, U.S. Patent No. 6,868,283, U.S. Patent No. 7,289,772 and  U.S. Patent No. 7,020,849.

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No intentions of settling with Apple

According to reports, the patents had been sold to HTC by Google a week before the suit, last September. What’s interesting is that most of these patents were not originally even Google’s and had changed companies at least twice before falling into Google’s hands. HTC has since withdrawn its appeal. Wang was quoted at the time as saying, “Apple is a company with ‘big muscle’ and is famous worldwide. In the United States particularly, it will be able to stop us by all means. This is our challenge.”

Earlier in July this year, the two companies got back in the headlines when Apple’s attempts at getting the import of some HTC smartphones into the United States banned met with failure as the International Trade Commission (ITC), a body that hears patent complaints pertaining to imported products, refused to issue a ban order. Apple had sought the ban as it believed that the smartphones infringe upon its patent. A little before that, ITC stated that although it would look into Apple’s complaint against HTC, it would not issue an order to ban the phones immediately.

Cupertino-based Apple Inc. grabbed global headlines recently when it achieved its big win against the South Korean giant, Samsung Electronics. An end of sorts to one longstanding patent battle between two technology heavyweights - Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics came this past week. Apple won after what has been one long battle and Samsung Electronics is to cough up compensation to the tune of a staggering $1.05 billion. It is a big win for the company. 

It had been asserted that Samsung infringed on Apple’s technologies which it used to create its iPhone and iPad. Samsung, however, is expected to appeal on the decision. In what would also come as a blow to Samsung’s ambitions in the U.S., Apple has also demanded in its appeal that Samsung withdraw its most popular smartphones and tablets from the U.S. market.

Chang went on to add further that the company just may introduce at least three new models before September. They may include the HTC One X+ with a 5-inch touchscreen and support for 4G LTE.