The legal war Apple bears with the biggest manufacturers of touchscreen mobile devices could take a new turn, after Google, the giant behind the most popular operating system for smartphones and tablets – Android – decided to help its customers by providing certain invention patents with which the companies can challenge Apple in court, writes Bloomberg.
Google has transferred a package of nine patents in the property of the Taiwanese manufacturer, HTC, on which the Asian company has initiated a legal action against Apple. Google declined to comment on the reasons why they had made that transfer.
Analysts consider that the move represents a new step in the fight which now bears in courts among the big companies. Google, which has been criticized before that it stood aside, while its partners that were using Android were being hit in court by Apple, decided to take a more active role in the fight on the so-called touchscreen market, considered as one of the most competitive.
Recently, the company that owns the most popular internet search engine has announced that it intends to expand its patents portfolio in order to protect themselves against the legal actions concerning the theft of technology. Google faces in this race a strong competition from the same Apple.
Google's decision to transfer the patents to HTC comes shortly after Apple acquired, from a German court, a blocking in sales of Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, on the basis of infringement of some invention patents on the hardware side. Apple has also filed lawsuits to its rivals HTC and Motorola.
Android, the operating system developed by Google for both tablets and smartphones, has supremacy in this segment with a market share of about 50%.
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