Sometimes one wakes up to something truly surprising-- Apple and HTC drop all current lawsuits, thanks to a "global settlement" complete with 10-year license agreement covering all current and future patents held by the two companies.
Yes, sometimes a man does get to bite a dog... and a couple of pen strokes end 32-month long patent war.
Unsurprisingly settlement details are confidential, even if HTC says the agreement does "not have a material adverse impact" on financials-- meaning HTC is paying at least something to Apple.
HTC was another target under Apple's "thermonuclear war" against Android. The first salvo fired on March 2010, when Apple sued over 10 user interface patents. HTC lost (due to 1996 patent covering a data-detecting function) and as a result products such as the HTC One X were temporarily banned in the US.
Did HTC decide it has more to gain by playing nice than risking a rerun of Apple vs Samsung? Most probably, and not just HTC. According to the FOSS Patents legal blog, "it makes a lot of sense" for Apple to settle with HTC (and HTC accepting Apple terms), simply because both companies have other priorities to focus on.
After all, Apple faces tightening competition (such as a still-mighty Samsung and a Google armed with a stack of Motorola Mobility patents), while HTC has shrinking market share and disappointing financials to worry about.
Either way, the Patent War continues to develop in interesting-- sometimes even surprising-- directions...
Go HTC and Apple Settle Patent Dispute
Go Apple-HTC 10-Year License Deal Shows Android Patent Peace is Achievable (FOSS Patents)