Apple Inc.’s partial early victory late last week in an escalating legal battle over smartphone patents has some investors now wondering about potential risks for companies developing phones based on Google Inc.’s Android operating system.

Last week, the U.S. International Trade Commission made an initial ruling that HTC Corp. violated two of Apple’s patents related to smartphones. HTC in Taipei plans to appeal the preliminary ruling, which still has to be voted on by the entire six-member commission.

As investors try to wade through the legal entanglement, which has many arms and legs and different companies in a patent scrum, one thing appears to be clear: The Android operating system, which has been selling like hotcakes over the last several months, has questionable strength in intellectual property that may or may not affect future product plans by handset makers. (Market Watch)