HTC just announced that some of their smartphones have been released by customs and should arrive to phone carriers sometime soon.
The reason for the delay in shipments? Apple filed a legal dispute over patent rights. Each imported phone has to be reviewed by custom officials and given a thorough inspection. HTC wrote on their website describing that it takes time it takes for each smartphone to be inspected before it’s allowed through customs. They also claimed that they don’t have the specific status on each model but they’re working hard to make sure that the entire issue is resolved soon.
It’s been rumored that the Taiwan-based tech company has been creating custom-Android phones to hinder people from suspecting patent theft.
This ongoing patent dispute involve data-tapping functionality. It all started last week when the United States International Trade Commission prevented two of their flagship phones including HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G Lte because HTC apparently infringed on a copyright.
In one article about smartphone sales we shared with you last week, we included a chart that indicated the gains and losses of many big cell phone makers including HTC. During the first quarter of 2012 HTC sold 7,703.4 which is significantly less than last year’s Q1 sales which reached 9,313.5.
HTC Corp (TPE:2498)’s patent infringement problem with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) does not reflect well on their company image but at least they are taking matters into their own hands and are actively seeking a solution for the problem. The significant money loss for the company isn’t really a good thing either but I see the potential for a silver lining in the cloud. Since HTC was one of the biggest makers of the Android phone, I can see the company making a full comeback but it probably won’t be until after this whole patent legal issue is resolved.
