Apple has shut down one front in what Steve Jobs, the company's
late CEO, once described as a thermonuclear legal war against
Android, Google's mobile operating system.
Late Saturday, Apple and HTC, the Taiwanese smartphone maker,
announced they had agreed to dismiss a series of lawsuits against
each other, a feud that started more than two years ago when Apple
accused HTC of improperly copying the iPhone.
The companies said their settlement includes a 10-year license
agreement that grants rights to current and future patents held by
both parties.
The companies declined to disclose the financial terms of the
deal, though it is widely believed HTC is paying Apple as part of
the agreement.
The deal was the first settlement between Apple and a maker of
devices that use Android.
Other patent lawsuits continue around the globe, including far
more significant ones between Apple and Samsung.
