technology news: HTC suspends UK smartphone sales due to patent claim, Xiaomi targeted too

HTC hasn't enjoyed the best sales in recent years, as its market-share continues to slide. Now, it looks like we can expect even fewer sales in the U.K. due to a patent battle.

Patent licensing firm IPCom says HTC infringed a 2012 U.K. court ruling. Back then, the U.K. High Court ruled that HTC infringed upon IPCom's patent 100A, which determines how emergency calls are prioritized on 3G networks. The patent in question was obtained by IPCom as part of a deal with Bosch in 2007.

HTC was permitted to use a workaround when launching phones in the U.K., the patent firm claimed, but says the brand's Desire 12 doesn't use this workaround. The Taiwanese company has therefore decided to suspend sales of the Desire 12, IPCom asserts, but the bad news doesn't stop there.

"Furthermore, HTC has signalled that it is taking steps to suspend sales of all its mobile devices in the U.K.," IPCom's press release noted.

Read: Future Xiaomi phones could be recharged by the sun | The best Bluetooth gaming controllers

The patent licensing company says it's also in negotiations with Xiaomi regarding its alleged patent infringement. It says the Mi Mix 3 slider flagship uses the offending patent.

"As a result, IPCom has filed a complaint in the U.K. High Court against Xiaomi, seeking relief against the Chinese giant unless it enters into a reasonable licence agreement," the IP firm said in its release.

This isn't the first time IPCom has taken legal action against industry bigwigs, as it's previously filed suits against Nokia and Vodafone.

We've contacted IPCom and HTC to find out more about the situation and will update the article when/if we receive a response. What do you make of the situation? Let us know in the comments!