Apple and HTC are at it again — but this time the fight has migrated over to the UK. On July 29 in London, HTC filed a lawsuit against Apple, reports Bloomberg. There hasn’t been any word confirming that this lawsuit is tied to the current patent tussle between the two phone makers, but it would be quite the surprise if it wasn’t.
We had thought that the dispute would grow quiet, after reports circulated that HTC’s CFO was down to hash it out conversation-style with Apple. Apparently, that’s not quite panning out.
Just two weeks ago, a U.S. judge ruled in favor of Apple when the company requested an ITC import ban on HTC’s “personal electronic devices.” According to the judge, certain HTC Android phones infringe on two of Apple’s patents, making the Taiwan-based company vulnerable to attack.
The July 15 ruling wasn’t Apple’s first go at blocking HTC devices: Apple filed a similar complaint in March of 2010, as well. HTC has tried hard to protect itself, picking up S3 Graphics — and more important, S3’s robust patent portfolio — for $300 million.