Apple may be trying to make an example of HTC (the company behind Nexus One) with its lawsuit. That does not mean HTC is going to just accept Apple’s terms. Anybody who is hoping for a swift ending to the HTC vs. Apple spat should think again. With HTC filing a patent complaint against Apple, this battle will go on for some time. One can’t fault the company for hoping for healthy competition in the smartphone market:

The industry should be driven by healthy competition and innovation that offer consumers the best, most accessible mobile experiences possible. We are taking this action against Apple to protect our intellectual property, our industry partners, and most importantly our customers that use HTC phones.

said Jason Mackenzie, HTC’s vice president of North America, in his statement. So not only Apple is not in favor of healthy competition, it is somehow infringing on a few patents held by HTC.

The system has been broken for a while. No wonder companies get away with bogus lawsuits and complaints all the time. It is not clear how Apple is infringing upon HTC’s patents. But this will slow down the process and make it more difficult for Apple. HTC’s complaint seems to be a ploy to try to get Apple to the negotiation table. On the surface, the complaint does not look that strong to make Apple want to play ball with HTC.

The good news is no one should be worried about Apple products getting blocked in the U.S. This complaint and that of Apple’s will run their course. No matter which side you are on, you won’t have to give up on your favorite phone anytime soon.

Apple just doesn’t seem to get a break these days. At least when it comes to dealing with companies such as Kodak and Nokia. We already know that Nokia going after Apple’s profits. This time it’s Kodak that is making trouble for Apple and RIM. The company has alleged that Apple and RIM have infringed upon its patents. The International Trade Commission is now investigating both companies, and it could all lead to a sales ban for iPhone in the U.S. While that scenario is not likely at this point, Kodak will push to get royalty for its alleged patent.

If these lawsuits are not bad enough, Apple has to fight hard to keep Google off its turf. In another provocative move, Google has acquired and discontinued one of the best e-mail applications available for iPhone, depriving the iPhone nation from taking advantage of one of the better apps on the market. This war between Google and Apple is going to get even more nasty, but Google is being unusually evil with its approach against the iPhone.

Microsoft can play this game as well. We have already seen Microsoft’s latest mobile platform. But don’t expect Microsoft to play nice with Google and Apple. The company has waited too long to release an exciting Windows Upgrade. All that work wasn’t to get the third place in the mobile platform wars. So I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft made some acquisitions of its own.

Apple is going to take some hits with its iPad as well. You can be sure that there will be lawsuits, more than we have seen so far. And unlike the iPhone, iPad is being taken seriously by Apple’s competitors. HP and other tablet makers are going to go after Apple iPad aggressively. Let’s not forget Amazon is building its answer to the iPad as well. Things may look a bit uncertain for Apple right now, but the company has passed all kinds of tests in the past. There is no reason it can’t do it again.

These times may be very exciting for Apple fans and those who make the magic happen at Apple. After all, Apple is working on a tablet, the new iPhone, iPhone OS 4, and all kinds of craziness. That hasn’t kept Nokia from going after Apple hard with its lawsuit. The lawsuit battle between Apple and Nokia is nothing new. Nokia filed a lawsuit against Apple a while back, accusing Apple of patent infringement with iPhone. Since Apple was not too cooperative with that last lawsuit and launched its own countersuit, Nokia has decided to step up its game again. In its countersuit, Apple did indicate that it was going to fight hard to protect its work, so the fight is far from over:

Other companies must compete with us by inventing their own technologies, not just by stealing ours

Nokia is now firing back by asking the courts to keep Apple from importing products that infringe Nokia’s patents. The case has not been assigned to a judge yet, so it’s tough to see where it’s going. But Nokia is quite determined to get its hands on some of the riches that the iPhone has brought Apple. In fact, Nokia is going after everything Apple has made, including its mobile phones, portable music players, and computers.

We have known for a while now that Nokia has been struggling to keep up with the momentum that Apple has built up with iPhone and its other products. It’s tough to say who has a case here, but as we have seen in the past, these lawsuits can be successful. Microsoft did have to deal with a somewhat similar type lawsuit and has just lost in the courts. That doesn’t mean the company won’t be selling Office anymore. But the company will need to make changes to Office code before start selling it again.

At this point, it’s not known how Apple and Nokia will proceed with their legal battle. It’s more likely that they will settle out of courts. Of course, the idea scenario for Apple is to have Nokia’s lawsuit tossed. I am not sure that’s going to happen. But iPhone owners shouldn’t be affected by anything that comes out of this battle (as it looks at the moment).

So much for Nokia beating Apple without turning to lawsuits. The company has been trying hard to beat Apple iPhone with a wave of products, but so far has not had the success you would expect from a top company such as Nokia. What happens when you try everything and still can’t make a dent against your main competitor? You try litigation. At least that’s what Nokia is trying. Apparently, it took a few years for Nokia to figure out that Apple was using the wireless standards Nokia helped develop a while ago. Nokia seems to have asked Apple to pay up in the past, but who would honestly expect Apple to pay up without a fight?

By refusing to agree appropriate terms for Nokia’s intellectual property, Apple is attempting to get a free ride on the back of Nokia’s innovation

This may sound as a minor lawsuit, but experts are claiming that Nokia could get upto 5% per sold iPhone as a part of the ruling. If that comes to pass, it will be a kick in the stomach for Apple and a very hefty handout for Nokia. So what is the real reason for Nokia suing Apple after all these years? The main reason might be the decline in its market-share and sales. The times are tough, and Nokia does need to be compensated for the technologies it has helped develop. It is really an honorable to compete? Not really. But Apple would have probably done the same if it was in the same position.

I have always believed that litigation hinders innovation. In this case, Apple does probably afford to pay Nokia to get this over with. Nokia did take a long time to make its claim, but it has every right to sue. The bad news is you can expect to see more of these lawsuits in the future as smart-phone manufacturers fail to meet their sales goals and fall short of coming up with innovative devices that people want to buy. It’s not the most innovative way to increase revenue, but it works.

Your take: was Nokia right to sue Apple after all these months?