Nokia has won a "major" patent infringement case against HTC that could stop the Taiwanese handset maker from selling its flagship smartphone in the UK.
Nokia said it would seek compensation as well as an injunction against the import and sale of HTC's products in Britain. HTC will appeal against the decision, which affects various handsets including the HTC One, its premium phone.
The court decision, which validated Nokia's patent for a technology used to transmit voice and text messages, is the latest victory for the Finnish group in a global pursuit of HTC over alleged patent infringement.
The win also serves as a reminder of where the future lies for the Finnish handset maker, which, after agreeing to sell its devices business to Microsoft, retains ownership of the intellectual property rights.
Analysts see patent litigation as a lucrative source of future revenue for Nokia as it makes more aggressive use of patents registered during 25 years of research and development in the sector. Nordea analysts expect the group's intellectual property rights income will double over the next three years.
Florian Mueller, a patent expert, forecast that HTC would need to pay royalties to Nokia for a licence to use some of its non-standard essential patents. He added that "Nokia made major headway today in the most difficult court in the world for plaintiffs, the England and Wales High Court".
Nokia said that similar action was being pursued against HTC in Germany, Italy, Japan and the US. "Today's judgment is a significant development in our dispute with HTC," it said.
Nokia added that the US international trade commission gave an initial determination of infringement of two Nokia patents in September while, in March, a court in Mannheim in Germany ordered HTC to cease infringing a Nokia patent for power-saving technology.
However, Nokia has also lost patent cases against HTC. In March, a German court dismissed two key patent claims over phone technology.
Nokia has taken action on more than 50 patents against HTC in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, UK and US.
HTC said: "Naturally HTC is disappointed by the decision that the UK court has reached in this case and we will be seeking to appeal the finding immediately."
Nokia is also expected to negotiate licences to use its technology with Samsung and other handset makers, having already struck an agreement with Apple.
Analysts at Berenberg said that it had been a "masterstroke" of the Nokia board to maintain its patent assets. The bank said that net royalty income this year will be about $600m but forecast that this could rise sharply.
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