ITC to re-examine one out of four patents HTC accuses Apple of violating

Back in October, an ITC judge ruled that Apple did not infringe on four patents held by HTC relating to power management and phone dialing. On Friday, the ITC announced that it would take another look at one of the four patents. This means that the books are closed on the remaining three patents. HTC filed the countersuit back in May 2010, accusing Apple of using the patents in producing the Apple iPhone, Apple iPod and Apple iPad.  Apple had started the litigation with a complaint against the Taiwan based manufacturer. 

A final ruling on Apple's complaint against HTC is scheduled for this Monday after being postponed this past Wednesday. The original decision in that case was that HTC violated a pair of Apple's patents. When the original ruling was made in July, it was feared that it could lead to a ban on Android devices in the States. A spokesman for Apple repeated the company line  on Friday by saying, "competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours."

Both Apple and HTC have various complaints lodged against the other with the ITC. In July, Apple had filed another complaint against HTC while the latter filed its third complaint against Apple in September, using patents given to the company by Google. In his biography, it was mentioned that the late Steve Jobs took a keen interest in his company's legal actions against HTC, feeling like the Taiwan company stole Apple inventions. HTC CEO Peter Chou called the whole thing "a distraction", positive that it will not affect HTC's business.

Apple and Samsung also have a similar legal tangle going on worldwide. Recently, a U.S. court refused Apple's request for a ban on Samsung's Galaxy smartphones and tablets while a patent infringement trial is in progress.

source: Reuters via AppleInsider