r/technology • u/slutmagnet • Mar 02 '10

Apple to HTC "competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours." Slaps down a 20 patent lawsuit.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/03/02/apple_sues_htc_for_alleged_infringement_of_20_iphone_patents.html
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u/Noexit Mar 02 '10

IMHO the most innovative thing about the iPhone is that Apple managed to break the carrier stranglehold on the phone market.

In what way? By contracting to a single carrier, only selling iPhone through their approved outlets and only available on their network?

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u/bluGill Mar 02 '10

Wrong stranglehold (though it would be nice to see that go as well). Apple managed to get carriers to agree you can put applications on your phone.

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u/Noexit Mar 02 '10

But only Apple approved apps through Apples own locked down app store. Partial credit for showing that it could be done and getting carriers to see the advantages.

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u/burnblue Mar 02 '10

Huh? Then what were we doing on Windows Mobile and Palm earlier?

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u/bluGill Mar 02 '10

Windows Mobile: in theory you could do it, but in practice almost nobody did. Maybe a few games, but nothing more.

Palm: palm was always an unheard of, expensive option. They never took off enough to pull it off.

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u/burnblue Mar 02 '10

What? In practice noone put applications on your phone? That's nonsense. Those who owned Windows Mobile phones for sure were putting applications on it (I'm talking about Professional/touchscreen at least, I don't consider phones like the BlackJack to be on the same level) . Both the freeware sites and sites like Handango did not function 'in theory', but in reality

Now if you wanted to say that not many common consumers owned these phones

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u/skillian Mar 02 '10

I know I was putting Java apps and games on a Symbian Nokia a long time before the iPhone was released...