Apple sues HTC for infringing on iPhone patents

Hoo boy. Apple has just sued rival smartphone maker HTC for infringing on 20 of its iPhone patents. HTC, if you’re unaware, is the manufacturer of Google’s Nexus One.

So what does this mean for you, the consumer? Nothing, yet. But if Apple is successful and these patents related to things like multitouch, we could see the Nexus One pulled from the shelves. We could also see future phones not coming with multi-touch screens, which would be a big blow to innovation and features on smartphones made by everyone but Apple. We’ll keep tabs on this one and follow up when it hits the courts.

Via Apple