ASSESSMENTS

Qualcomm Ends Its Fight With Apple, but an Antitrust Threat Still Looms

Apr 17, 2019 | 22:59 GMT

Qualcomm and Apple recently announced a worldwide legal settlement -- effectively ending the various royalty and patent disputes between the two U.S. tech giants.

Qualcomm and Apple announced a worldwide legal settlement on April 16 -- freeing Apple to develop 5G-capable smartphones. However, Qualcomm still faces other sizable legal challenges from global regulators for using its chip patents to charge excessive royalties, including an antitrust lawsuit from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

(BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

Highlights

  • Apple and Qualcomm have resolved their litany of global legal disputes, which will likely allow Apple to introduce a 5G iPhone by 2020 and without having to partner with a rival to do so.
  • But other legal challenges to Qualcomm's business model and preeminence in telecommunications remain, including a pending antitrust lawsuit from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). 
  • Behind Qualcomm, China's Huawei and South Korea's Samsung are the next most influential leaders in the telecommunications space. 
  • Should the FTC ruling result in the breakup of Qualcomm's monopoly, it risks damaging the United States' dominance of the tech sector by opening the door for China to set standards for the future development of telecommunications technologies. 

After years of litigation involving a number of countries and disputes, Qualcomm and Apple agreed to put aside their differences and settle their disputes worldwide. As part of their settlement, the two U.S. tech giants have also agreed to a new six-year supply agreement for Apple to buy Qualcomm chips, including its 5G modems. However, while the agreement may have freed Apple to develop 5G-capable iPhones using Qualcomm's chips, Qualcomm is still fending off other legal challenges from global regulators that could place the United States' current tech dominance in peril. ...

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