Mikey CampbellIf HTC chooses not to appeal, today's dismissal could bring an end to its suit against Apple that was first lodged in May 2010 and has subsequently been whittled down to one out of an original five asserted patents, reports FOSS Patent's Florian Mueller.
The dismissal echoes an initial October 2011 determination by an Administrative Law Judge who found that no violation had occurred.
Following the initial finding, HTC brought the suit before the ITC for review in December and while the Commission granted an investigation, it would only do so with respect to the power management patent.
Muller believes that HTC's case is fundamentally weak, and was most likely a response to an Apple complaint against the company in March 2010. However, the two companies are still involved in a complicated battle that includes upcoming cases in the U.S. and Germany, and the results of those cases could have far-reaching implications.
In November 2011, the ITC dismissed another complaint against Apple, this time from S3 Graphics.
The complaint was thought to be motivated by Apple's suits against HTC's Android handsets as S3 Graphics and HTC were in the same family of companies.
The Taiwanese phone maker purchased S3 for $300 million when it appeared the company would win its case against Apple, though HTC later rued the decision when the complaint was dismissed.
As for the most recent ITC finding, HTC has the option of appealing the decision to the Federal Circuit, however no announcement of such plans has been made.
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11 Comments
Last. Man. Standing.
In November 2011, the ITC dismissed another complaint against Apple, this time from S3 Graphics.
The complaint was thought to be motivated by Apple's suits against HTC's Android handsets as S3 Graphics and HTC were in the same family of companies.
The Taiwanese phone maker purchased S3 for $300 million when it appeared the company would win its case against Apple, though HTC later rued the decision when the complaint was dismissed.
Well at least they only spent $300 million in their failed patent trolling attempt. Just think how great their rue would have been if they had spent $12.5 billion.
Is HTC going to shrivel up and blow away? They have fallen far and fast.
These lawsuits are just a side show. While everyone is busy arguing over who stole what, Apple is slowly winning in the marketplace, even to my surprise.
I have simply been amazed lately how many iPhones I am seeing. It is suddenly like it was with the iPod five years ago. Nearly everyone has iPhones, suddenly.
I think Siri finally pushed Apple over the top. It just takes Google too long to push out upgrades, Android just doesn't seem all that cool anymore. Most Android builders are losing money, and at the same time having to pay legal bills. Android is in a world of hurt.
Just think how great their rue would have been if they had spent $12.5 billion.
Good one. :-)