Apple told rivals to back off multitouch back in January

The buzz around the water cooler is that Apple's suit against HTC has really shaken up the cellphone industry. Talk is that some manufacturers are so distraught and worried about using Android that they are considering switching to Windows Phones 7 when it is released. Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner wrote in a note to clients that based on his industry checks, "Starting in January, Apple launched a series of C-Level discussions with tier-1 handset makers to underscore its growing displeasure at seeing its iPhone related IP (intellectual property) infringed." The Cupertino crew felt that no one was taking them seriously and decided that legal action would wake everyone up.

Back in 2009, Apple COO Tim Cook told analysts in a conference call that Apple would not put up with having its patents infringed upon. At the time, the thought was that Apple was trying to keep multitouch off the just revealed Palm Pre which was considered a real threat to the iPhone back then (seems funny now). While many handset makers have kept multitouch off their phones, a 358 page patent covering most of the iPhone's UI, including multitouch and the use of gestures, is Apple's main ammunition and is the power that the company now holds to have the other handset makers cowering in the corner.

sources: Geek