HTC is likely to be prohibited from continuing to sell its HTC One M9 and other models in Germany for violating a patent involving voice coding technology owned by Acacia, according to a district court ruling in Mannheim, Germany.

HTC has expressed regret over the court ruling as well as the injunction issued by the court, stating that it will appeal the case in order to protect the interests of its client and consumers and also to minimize the impact on its business in Germany.

Germany, the UK and France are the major markets for HTC in Europe, and the case may affect 2% of HTC's overall smartphone shipments, according an estimate of industry sources.

HTC shipped about three million smartphones in the third quarter of 2015 compared to 3.5-4.5 million units shipped in the first and second quarters of the year. Currently, combined shipments to the US, India and Taiwan account for 60% of HTC's total shipments.