Nokia stepped up its legal action against Apple over the holiday period, filing a fresh complaint with the US International Trade Commission (ITC) that accused the iPhone-maker of infringing Nokia patents in “virtually all of its mobile phones, portable music players, and computers.” The new complaint significantly widens the scope of the legal battle between the two smartphone vendors. Nokia’s initial complaint – in October last year – referred exclusively to patents relating to the iPhone. Apple hit back last month with a suit of its own, accusing the Finnish vendor of anti-competitive practices and patent infringement. In its new complaint to the ITC, Nokia claims that seven of its patents are now being used by Apple to create key features in its products in the area of user interface, as well as camera, antenna and power management technologies. “This action is about protecting the results of [our] pioneering development,” said Nokia’s Paul Melin in a statement.

Most analysts agree that Nokia’s move is a strategy to protect its leadership in smartphones from fast-growing new market entrants such as Apple. “To some degree it is a desperate move, but Nokia has been in the mobile handset business from the very beginning and has many more patents than Apple, so it’s likely that Apple to some extent at least has used some of Nokia’s patents, and maybe some others too,” Redeye analyst Greger Johansson told Reuters last week. The ITC is expected to decide whether to pursue the case in around 30 days. Apple has yet to comment on the latest development, though another countersuit is deemed likely.