A federal judge has ruled that Qualcomm breached US antitrust laws by charging excessive licensing fees and suppressing competition in the market for mobile phone chips. The ruling is a major blow to Qualcomm, which was accused of using its dominant position as an iPhone supplier to stifle competition. Qualcomm must now renegotiate its licensing agreements with customers by lowering its prices and ending threats to cut off access to its chips. The company will also be prohibited from signing exclusive supply agreements with smartphone manufacturers which prevent its rivals from selling chips to the same firm.
A federal judge has ruled that Qualcomm breached US antitrust laws by charging excessive licensing fees and suppressing competition in the market for mobile phone chips. The court endorsed claims by the Federal Trade Commission, which brought a case in January 2017, that the company exploited its dominance and “strangled competition”. Qualcomm must now renegotiate its licensing agreements with customers by lowering its prices and ending threats to cut off access to its chips. The company will also be prohibited from signing exclusive supply agreements with smartphone manufacturers which prevent its rivals from selling chips to the same firm.