It's long been tussling with an R&D company named Ipcom over intellectual property, particularly regarding wireless tech developed for car phones. HTC agreed to only sell phones that used a workaround in the UK. However, according to the BBC, Ipcom claimed HTC hadn't put that workaround in place, based on tests it ran earlier this year. It accused HTC of having "disregard for the law by contravening a UK court ruling."

"As a leading innovator, HTC takes intellectual property issues very seriously," an HTC spokeswoman told the BBC. "We are proactively investigating an infringement claim by a third party with respect to a single handset model."