HTC said a verdict in its closely watched patent-infringement case with Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been delayed until Dec. 19, the second time a final decision has been pushed back.
The U.S. International Trade Commission had been expected to rule on whether HTC is violating Apple patents Dec. 6, but that was postponed without explanation last week.
If the final decision is against HTC, it could potentially affect the importation of HTC products into the United States. A decision in favor of HTC could help it in other ITC cases against the iPhone maker. The U.S. market accounts for up to 50 percent of HTC's revenue.
"It's hard to say whether the delay is good or bad because we don't know the true reason" behind it, Yuanta Securities analyst Bonnie Chang told Reuters. "We hope the ruling will come as soon as possible so we can predict where the bottom is and whether there will be a settlement, and then we can have a better view of HTC's fundamentals in the coming one year."
HTC has been trying to calm the market in the wake of a November announcement that it is cutting its fourth-quarter revenue forecast by as much as 23 percent. The company has argued that it has a bumper crop of smartphones coming early next year to bring it back to growth.
For more:
- see this Reuters article
- see this Bloomberg article
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