“We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it,” Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said in a statement.<\/p>\n
“We’ve decided to do something about it. We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours,” Jobs said.<\/p>\n
Apple accused HTC of infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the “user interface, underlying architecture and hardware” of the iPhone.<\/p>\n
The company, based in Cupertino, California, said the lawsuit was filed in a US District Court in the state of Delaware and with the US International Trade Commission.<\/p>\n
Apple has sold more than 40 million iPhones since introducing the smartphone in 2007.<\/p>\n
HTC makes handsets for a number of leading companies and is the manufacturer of the Nexus One unveiled by Apple rival Google in January.<\/p>\n
Apple is currently being sued by Nokia for patent infringement and has countersued the Finnish mobile phone giant.<\/p>\n