We've covered a fair few of the ROM hacks here on Gizmodo, which many parts of an extremely active network of hackers/Android-lovers have created. Now though, HTC is cracking down on them, sending Conflipper's community a cease-and-desist.


Conflipper has been behind a few of the most high-profile hacks, but is also particularly skilled at digging out mentions of upcoming Android phones in the developers' code. He gives the army of Android lovers the tools to customize their phones, but also stirs up a lot of publicity and hype for HTC's products.


Nonetheless, HTC has ordered the month-old Shipped-Roms community, led by Conflipper, to "cease and desist," taking offense to the illegally-published/copied "original art work," meaning most probably their phones' code. The letter, published on Shipped-Roms, says also that it's a "serious criminal offence," not just in the US but also the EU and "other countries where similar laws are enforced."

Judging by the comments though, the Android community isn't going to take this one lying down, with one of them saying "HTC (High Tech Crap) should only thanksgiving us for fixing their crappy roms,if it wasnt for Rom Development they would sell half of their phones." [Shipped-Roms via MobileCrunch via Phandroid]