HTC has stopped selling phones through its UK website while a patent issue plays out. Its handsets are all listed as out of stock, including the Exodus 1 blockchain phone, though the company is still selling them in other nations. They’re also available through Amazon’s UK site.
HTC has been involved in a long-running dispute with research and development company Ipcom over a wireless technology developed for car phones. To resolve it, HTC agreed to sell only mobiles with a workaround in the UK.
However, Munich-based Ipcom has alleged it carried out tests earlier this year that showed no workaround had been implemented. It said HTC had failed to “play by the rules” and had displayed “disregard for the law by contravening a UK court ruling”. A HTC spokeswoman said: “As a leading innovator, HTC takes intellectual property issues very seriously. “We are proactively investigating an infringement claim by a third party with respect to a single handset model.”
In the UK, Carphone Warehouse, O2 and EE had already stopped selling its phones. This had left it reliant on sales via its own site and Amazon, which is still listing HTC handsets for sale. HTC also makes a 5G router and virtual reality headsets, which remain on sale.
