Apple has filed a lawsuit against Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer HTC accusing it of infringing some 20 patents. HTC manufactures mobile devices for several companies including Google's own Nexus One.

In a statement Apple's Chief Executive Steve Jobs said, "We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it...we've decided to do something about it. We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours."

In its suit, filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission and a district court in Delaware, Apple is seeking a lasting injunction which would effectively bar HTC from selling phones that use the disputed technology in the United States.

HTC have so far released only a short statement in which it said it had not yet had the opportunity to examine the filing and were "unable to comment on the validity of the claims" being made against the company. Many of the devices listed are said to run on Google's Android operating system, amongst them the Nexus One.

Apple is currently locked in legal action with another mobile phone manufacturer, Nokia. The Finnish company sued Apple for patent infringement in October 2009. Apple countersued in December and the case is still ongoing.

(Source: Xinhua)