Apple and Qualcomm Install: Here's What It Means for Your Next iPhone

The frenemies have put on make-up.

Apple and Qualcomm on Tuesday settled a two-year battle over patent licensing, a move that ended a lawsuit that had just started a day earlier. Companies, which have fought in courts in China, Germany and other countries, as well as in the United States, will put an end to all global litigation.

According to a joint statement, Apple, based in Cupertino, California, will make an unspecified payment to Qualcomm. The companies also have a six-year license agreement that includes a two-year extension option and a multi-year chipset contract. The agreement came into effect on April 1, the companies said.

The companies did not specify what motivated the change of heart. In January, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the iPhone maker was not in talks with Qualcomm. Analysts have speculated that Apple's need for 5G chips may have prompted the iPhone maker to negotiate, according to a Nikkei report that the company had tested Qualcomm 5G chips while both companies were exploring a settlement. Shortly after the announcement of the settlement, Intel, an Apple supplier, said that it was leave the phone modem business 5G.

Neither Apple nor Qualcomm commented beyond their statement.

The decision set the San Diego court where companies appeared in turmoil. Apple and its subcontractors had presented their opening arguments and a Qualcomm lawyer was almost finished when the announcement was made. A day earlier, the sides had selected a jury which included a pilot, a retired nurse and a former pitcher of the Kansas City Royals.

The settlement is the last turning point in a fight that could put your iPhone at risk. Qualcomm, based in San Diego, provides network connectivity chips for Apple's iPhones and is the world's leading provider of mobile chips. Its technology is essential for connecting phones to cellular networks. The company derives a significant portion of its revenues from the sale of its inventions to hundreds of device manufacturers, with charges being based on the value of the phone and not the components. Qualcomm holds patents for 3G, 4G and 5G phones, as well as other features such as software, so any handset manufacturer who builds a device that connects to the networks must pay license fees even it's not using Qualcomm. chips.

This includes Apple. The company manufactures its own application processor, the brain of the iPhone, but uses third-party chips for network connectivity. From the iPhone 4S in 2011 to the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus in 2015, the only supplier of these chips was Qualcomm. The following year, Apple began using Intel modems in some models of iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, but still used Qualcomm in versions for Verizon and Sprint.

This trend has continued in 2017, but the latest Apple phones – the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR – use only Intel 4G chips. Apple blamed Qualcomm, although Qualcomm said it wants to provide Apple. Still, Apple's move to 5G could be delayed by not working with Qualcomm.

A few hours after Apple and Qualcomm settled in, Intel announced its release from the 5G smartphone modems market. The chip maker was working on a processor for Apple that should appear on iPhones next year. But recently, it was feared that the chip is ready before iPhones 2021.

"The company will continue to meet existing customer commitments for its existing 4G smartphone modem product line, but does not plan to launch 5G modem products in the smartphone space, including those originally planned for 2020 ", said Intel in a press release. His only client in the modems is Apple.

It is unclear whether the terms of the settlement meet Apple's argument that it should pay a royalty based solely on the value of Qualcomm's connectivity chips, and not on the whole of the peripheral. Qualcomm "would actually tax Apple's innovation" and Apple "should not have to pay them for technological advances to which they have nothing to do". Its manufacturing partners, like Foxconn, are of the same opinion.

Qualcomm says its technology goes far beyond connectivity. It's also the multimedia, imagery, GPS and countless other inventions that make a phone a phone. Qualcomm even filed a patent in 2000, seven years before the introduction of the iPhone by Apple, which is one of the first smartphone descriptions and explains how to save energy in a smartphone. According to Qualcomm, without its technology, the iPhone would not be possible.

Two years ago, the US Federal Trade Commission sided with Apple and filed an antitrust lawsuit against Qualcomm. He accused the company of exercising a monopoly over wireless chips, forcing customers like Apple to work exclusively with it and charging excessive license fees for its technology. The two men met at a court in San Jose, California, in January to plead their case before a judge. Apple has provided some of the key witnesses and evidence of the FTC. Qualcomm is waiting for a verdict in this case. It is not clear for now if the settlement could affect San Jose's decision.

Apple and Qualcomm then confronted directly in March for a patent infringement lawsuit. A jury awarded a victory to Qualcomm and ordered Apple to pay $ 31 million for violation of three Qualcomm patents.

Here's what you need to know about this fight:

What is Qualcomm yet?

You may not know the name of Qualcomm (unless you live in his hometown, San Diego, and his attended stadium, Qualcomm Stadium), but there is a good chance you'll use a device with its technology. Qualcomm is best known for its chips that connect phones to cellular networks, as well as for its Snapdragon processors, which are the brains of mobile devices.

Qualcomm is one of the leading component suppliers of Samsung and other phone manufacturers (including Apple, up until 2018). Without a modem in your device, you could not call a Lyft to take you home or visit Facebook while you queue in front of a food truck.

What technology is made by Qualcomm?

In addition to its processors, Qualcomm invents many technologies used in mobile devices. The company claims to have invested more than $ 40 billion in research and development over the past three decades, and its patent portfolio contains more than 130,000 patents and patent applications worldwide.

The technology is focused on cellular communications and includes both standard essential patents and nonessential patents. (Standard essential patents are essential technologies for a device and must be licensed under fair and reasonable conditions and non-essential patents are not subject to these requirements.)

Some Qualcomm patents include multimedia standards, mobile operating systems, user interfaces, screens, power management, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and even airplane mode. The company is also the pioneer of CDMA, the 3G mobile network standard used by Verizon and Sprint, and has pioneered 4G and 5G network connectivity.

"Qualcomm's inventions are needed to the entire cellular network to work – they are not limited to modem chipset technologies or even cell phones, "said Qualcomm in a ranking.

What motivated the fight between Apple and Qualcomm?

It all boiled down to money. According to Apple, Qualcomm charges too much license fees for its mobile technology. Qualcomm said that the iPhone (and other mobile devices) would not be possible without its technology. Qualcomm also accused Apple of violating its patents for technologies such as power management.

What did Apple say in its complaints?

In part: "For many years, Qualcomm has unfairly insisted on paying royalties for technologies that have nothing to do with it.More Apple innovates with unique features such as TouchID, advanced displays and cameras, for Just to name a few, the more Qualcomm raises funds for no reason and the more it becomes expensive for Apple to fund these innovations. "

What does Qualcomm say?

In part: "The goal of Apple is clear: to exploit its immense power to force Qualcomm to accept less than fair value for the patented technologies that have led to innovation in cellular technology and have allowed Apple to generate more than $ 760 billion in iPhone sales. "

How did the legal battle start?

There has been a lot of legal back and forth, but here is the essential. Apple initially filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm in January 2017 in the United States, claiming that the company did not offer fair terms for its mobile technology. Qualcomm retaliated in April of the same year, denying all of Apple's allegations, nor accusing Apple of breach of contract and interference in contracts and relations maintained by Qualcomm with subcontractors.

Apple, through its manufacturers, stopped paying Qualcomm's license fees for iPhones sold in March 2017. This caused Qualcomm to take legal action to get paid.

What's new with the ITC?

Qualcomm also filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission in July 2017, demanding that some iPhone using Intel chips be banned from importing and selling in the US because Apple would have violated six patents from Qualcomm. He has also filed a lawsuit against Apple in the Southern District of California.

Technology companies have increasingly turned to the ITC in recent years to resolve their differences. Companies can pursue a case related to ITC alongside civil litigation.

"Apple continues to use our technology and not pay for it," said Don Rosenberg, the general counsel of Qualcomm, during an interview after filing his complaint. "They really left us no choice but to say: 'You have to stop that.'"

In January 2018, the Patent and Appeal Tribunal of the US Patent and Trademark Office said that he would examine Three Qualcomm patents at issue in its ITC cases against Apple. Such a revision may result in invalidation of the patents. One of the patents, No. 9,535,490, is the main patent relied on by Qualcomm as part of its lawsuit against Apple. It covers the "energy saving techniques in computer devices" that can reduce the electricity consumption of phones.

About 64% of the time following an intellectual property review, all patent claims are invalidated, according to a report of test statistics prepared by the USPTO. And 17% of the time, some claims are invalidated.

In March 2018, the ITC made two separate decisions. One said it was favorable to Qualcomm, while the other was tidy on Apple's side.

In one case, a judge said Apple's iPhones had infringed a Qualcomm patent and had to be banned from selling. But a full review of the commission in a separate second case revealed that Apple had not infringed Qualcomm's patents and had rejected that complaint. He also stated that he found that Qualcomm's patents were invalid.

Court meeting

What happened at the March trial?

The first test between Apple and Qualcomm was only about patents. In July 2017, Qualcomm accused Apple of having infringed six non-standard essential patents, but only three of them eventually ended up in court. A patent allows a smartphone to quickly connect to the Internet once the device is turned on. Another deals with graphics processing and battery life. The third allows your phone's applications to download data more easily by directing traffic between the application processor and the modem.

A jury finally decided that Apple had violated Qualcomm's three patents and had declared he should pay $ 31 million to the chip maker – or 1.41 USD per iPhone – for attacking its technology. The jury awarded Qualcomm the full amount requested at the beginning of the two-week trial, which took place in San Diego.

What about the April trial?

The April trial that had just been settled was to be the most important. It concerns Apple's original complaint, in which it sued Qualcomm for allegedly unfair conditions of license. Apple also said that Qualcomm had tried to punish him for cooperating with a South Korean investigation into Qualcomm's licensing practices by suspending a $ 1 billion rebate.

Apple is asking a court to reduce the amount paid to Qualcomm in license fees, as well as restoring the $ 1 billion.

Qualcomm claims that no modern device, including the iPhone, would have been possible "without relying on Qualcomm's fundamental cellular technologies." In its response to Apple's filing, the company filed its own counterclaims, including breach of contract and unfair competition. He also claimed an unspecified amount of damages and claimed that Apple had been ingested in its dealings with subcontractors.

In May 2017, Qualcomm filed a lawsuit against Apple's iPhone makers this alleged breach of contract. The lawsuit comes less than a month after Apple stopped paying patent royalties for Qualcomm technology, essential for connecting phones to a wireless network.

In July 2017, these four iPhone makers joined Apple by bring legal action against Qualcomm, alleging that it had used its position in the market to charge excessive royalties. The four companies are Foxconn's parent company, Hon Hai Precision Industry, Wistron, Compal Electronics and Pegatron. They claim at least $ 9 billion in damages, which could be tripled to $ 27 billion under antitrust law.

Patents and more patents

How does Qualcomm's licensing business work?

Some companies license patents on an individual basis; Qualcomm licenses all of its patents as a group. For a fixed price – based on the sale price of the final device, usually a phone -, the device manufacturer can use all Qualcomm technology.

It is common in the mobile industry that patent holders base their license fees on the total value of a handset. Qualcomm is not the only one. Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia, Samsung and ZTE also charge a license fee based on the total device. Any company that makes a device that connects to a mobile network must pay Qualcomm a license fee, even if it does not use Qualcomm chips.

Part of the dispute between Apple and Qualcomm is that Apple believes that its license fees should be based on the Qualcomm chip used in the device, not the entire phone.

"They work really well around essential patents to standards, but that's a small part of what's an iPhone," said Apple CEO Tim Cook in May 2017. "It has nothing to do with Apple's Touch ID or any other million innovations, so we do not think it's okay, so we're adopting a principled position."

Who uses Qualcomm's technology?

Qualcomm licenses its technologies to more than 340 companies, including phone vendors. However, its patents are not licensed to chip makers, which governments and Apple have contested. Qualcomm claims that chip makers do not need licenses because handset manufacturers already cover the costs of using its technology.

Apple licenses Qualcomm's technology through its manufacturers, such as Foxconn, instead of having a license. At the January trial, Apple said that it had been five years since we were trying to negotiate a direct license with Qualcomm, but that the proposed terms – such as cross-licensing to Apple's technology – were not equitable. Apple's manufacturing partners are also involved in legal litigation.

In April 2017, Apple announced that it had stopped paying royalties to Qualcomm for devices sold during the March quarter. Qualcomm has accused manufacturers of breach of contract. In October, Qualcomm said that Apple owed him $ 7 billion in patent license fees.

So, what are Qualcomm's license fees?

Qualcomm license fees are based on the total value of a device (999 USD in the case of the iPhone XS) compared to the value of a chip (closer to 20 USD) but they are also capped at a certain level. The FTC-Qualcomm battle revealed specific details about Qualcomm's licensing fees, including the price paid by Apple.

Apple's partners paid Qualcomm license fees five times higher than they rightly thought, said Apple's chief operating officer Jeff Williams at the FTC trial. Apple wanted to pay Qualcomm a fee of $ 1.50 per device, based on 5% of the cost of $ 30 per modem connecting iPhones to mobile networks. Instead, he ended up paying $ 7.50 per phone, he said.

"The idea of ​​a percentage of the cost of the phone does not make sense to us," Williams said. "It touched our hearts of fairness, at the time we were doing something really, really different."

Nevertheless, Apple accepted the tariff because it was lower than what Qualcomm wanted to impose on contract manufacturers: a 5% fee for each iPhone sold, which would be about $ 12 to $ 20 per device, Williams said. A rebate agreement reduced this amount to $ 7.50 per iPhone and the level has remained stable over the years.

In November 2017, Chinese handset manufacturers started paying 3.25% of the selling price of each phone sold in that country Qualcomm royalties for its 3G and 4G patents. Qualcomm then extended this rate on all of its licenses. It also caps the value of handsets, on which its royalties are based, at $ 400, even if a device sold for triple. And Qualcomm's cap for a full portfolio license is $ 20 per device and $ 13 for Qualcomm's core patents only.

For comparison, in one of its patent battles with Samsung, Apple claimed that it deserved $ 40 per device for Samsung's five-patent infringement, as well as for lost profits, for a total of 2.19 billion dollars. A jury ultimately ordered Samsung to pay $ 119.6 million for violating three of Apple's five patents related to software features such as "quick links" and "unlocking slides". And in the patent lawsuit between Apple and Qualcomm in March, a jury decided that three non-essential patents from Qualcomm worth $ 1.41 per iPhone.

Does Intel take this into account?

When Apple launched its iPhone ten years ago, it was using Infineon modems in Germany. It lasted three years until Apple moved to Qualcomm in 2011.

Intel bought Infineon in 2011, but its chips no longer appeared in the iPhone before the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus of 2016. At that time, the US models running on AT networks & T and T-Mobile started using Intel processors, while Verizon and Sprint versions used Qualcomm. Intel is now the only provider of iPhone modems.

Qualcomm has accused Apple to give Intel trade secrets. In September, Apple provided Intel engineers with confidential information, including Qualcomm source code and log files, to address flaws in their company's iPhones chips. Qualcomm said in a complaint that Apple was using this "second source of chipsets" to put pressure on it during commercial negotiations.

Qualcomm's new complaint is an amendment to the lawsuit filed against Apple in November 2017. Qualcomm said the recently discovered facts have given rise to new charges against the iPhone maker, including the appropriation of secrets. trade and the violation of the agreement.

Other legal battles

What's going on between Apple and Qualcomm outside the United States?

Apple filed suit against Qualcomm in China and the United Kingdom, while Qualcomm retaliated with lawsuits in China and Germany.

In early December 2018, a Chinese court ordered four of China's Apple subsidiaries to stop importing or selling iPhones due to a patent infringement. The patents focus on a technology that allows iPhone users to adjust and reformat the size and appearance of photographs and manage applications using a screen touch when viewing, navigating and removing applications.

Later that month, a Munich court had concluded that Apple had infringed Qualcomm's technology on saving energy on smartphones and had ruled that the iPhone maker had to stop sales of this device in Germany. In February, Apple took over the sale of its iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 in Germany, but it only offered models with Qualcomm chips. Apple has stopped using Intel chips in older devices in order to comply with the German court ruling.

In January, another German court, in Mannheim, rejected the latest claims from Qualcomm against Apple, calling them unfounded. The second German case is related to something called "apparent tension" in iPhones. The decision of a regional court said that Apple had not infringed Qualcomm's patents because the voltage in smartphones was not constant. He rejected the application, but Qualcomm appealed.

What other legal issues does Qualcomm face?

Qualcomm has been subject to numerous regulatory reviews in recent years due to alleged monopoly practices.

In China, in early 2015, Qualcomm agreed to pay a $ 975 million fine and reduce its license fees to settle the dispute in that country. South Korea fined the company $ 850 million the following year, which Qualcomm is appealing. In early 2018, the EU fined Qualcomm $ 1.23 billion for paying Apple to use only its chips, an advantage Qualcomm also calls. And in August of the same year, the company reached a settlement with Taiwan, in which the country would retain the $ 93 million that Qualcomm had paid, but the company owed nothing else.

At the same time, in March 2019, the Japan Fair Trade Commission decided that Qualcomm was not a monopoly after all, coming back to his decision of about ten years ago.

United States also accused Qualcomm of exercising a monopoly, and who went to court in January 2019. There is no decision yet in this case.

What was Qualcomm's fight with the FTC?

The FTC sued Qualcomm in 2017 and the case was tried in San Jose two years later. The US government has accused Qualcomm of exercising a monopoly over wireless chips, forcing customers like Apple to work exclusively with Qualcomm and charging "excessive" licensing fees for its technology, in part by enforcing its "no license, no chip ". Qualcomm's practices prevented competitors from entering the market, driving up the price of phones and, in turn, harming consumers, who faced higher prices for handsets, said the company. FTC.

The FTC argued that Qualcomm had used its power in the 3G and 4G chip market to force handset manufacturers to enter into unfair licensing agreements. If Qualcomm is not shut down, the FTC said it would do the same thing in the 5G market.

Qualcomm said the suit filed by the FTC is based on a "faulty legal theory". It is also said that customers choose their chips because they are the best and the processors never stop being provided to customers even when they are competing for licenses.

He also stated that his royalty practices did not harm competitors. Intel now provides all modems for Apple's iPhones, MediaTek is the world's second largest wireless chip maker, and Samsung and Huawei have developed their own modems.

Leaders of the largest technology companies testified about Qualcomm's licensing practices during the January trial, revealing the inner workings of the smartphone industry. The FTC and Qualcomm presented their closing arguments on January 29th. It is now up to Judge Lucy Koh to decide the verdict. At the same time, both sides continue to negotiate a possible settlement.

How did Apple take this case into account?

The FTC's complaint was specifically about how Qualcomm handled Apple. The US government said that Qualcomm had forced Apple to pay license fees for its technology in exchange for using its chips in iPhones. He also argued that Qualcomm used its position to demand excessively high license fees and harm competition by refusing to license its technology to competitors.

"Qualcomm acknowledged that any competitor who wins Apple's business would become stronger and used the exclusivity to prevent Apple from working with and improving the efficiency of Qualcomm's competitors," said the FTC in a statement at the time she filed her complaint.

During the trial, the FTC called Apple COO Jeff Williams and Vice President of Purchasing, Tony Blevins at the bar. Williams testified that Qualcomm had refused to sell modems to Apple for the 2018 iPhones due to the corporate licensing dispute. And Blevins said Apple wanted to integrate an Intel communication chip to its iPad Mini 2, launched in the fall of 2013, but that Qualcomm's rigorous business methods have canceled the project.

Matthias Sauer, an Apple executive and a witness called by Qualcomm, said that Intel modems did not meet the technical standards required for the company's iPhones in 2014. Even though Intel does could not either meet the requirements of Apple's chip for the iPad, he would have used them anyway, he said, if Qualcomm had not offered incentives to stay with his fleas.

The next iPhone

What does this mean for my next iPhone?

Most people do not really care about which chips are inside their devices, but Qualcomm has a big advantage over Intel: speed.

In mid-February 2019, Qualcomm unveiled the X55 processor, the first modem capable of running on any network, from 2G networks to 5G networks. It is capable of download speeds of 7.5 Gbps and will be built into devices by the end of 2019. Qualcomm's previous modem, the X50, will be built into devices in the coming months. This includes the 5G Moto Mod, which is now on sale alongside the Moto Z3 for Verizon's 5G networks.

La plupart des opérateurs commencent tout juste à activer leurs réseaux 5G et les sociétés de smartphones préparent encore leurs premiers appareils 5G. De nombreux grands fournisseurs Android – dont Samsung, Huawei et LG – ont été dévoilés Téléphones 5G à ou juste avant le MWC 2019 en février. Les premiers téléphones 5G utiliseront le modem X50, qui peut offrir des vitesses de téléchargement allant jusqu'à 5 Gbps.

À l’horizon des vacances 2019, tous les principaux fournisseurs d’Android aux États-Unis disposeront d’un téléphone 5G utilisant des puces Qualcomm.

Intel n'a pas encore de puce 5G sur le marché, mais il a précisé que son modem 5G serait prêt pour les appareils commerciaux à partir du second semestre 2019, avec un déploiement plus large en 2020. Cependant, le modem pourrait susciter certaines inquiétudes. différé.

Qu'en est-il d'un iPhone 5G?

La 5G devrait être 100 fois plus rapide que notre technologie sans fil 4G LTE actuelle et 10 fois plus rapide que ce que Google Fibre offre grâce à une connexion physique à la maison. Les experts disent que cela devrait permettre des utilisations comme la réalité virtuelle et la réalité augmentée, ainsi que des choses auxquelles nous ne pouvons même pas penser aujourd'hui.

Mais Apple peut être derrière avec la technologie. La société souhaitait utiliser les processeurs 4G LTE de Qualcomm dans ses iPhones 2018, mais le fabricant de puces ne fonctionnerait pas avec Apple, le Williams d'Apple. a témoigné dans le procès de la FTC.

Qualcomm continue de fournir à Apple des puces pour ses anciens iPhone, y compris les iPhone 7 et 7 Plus, a-t-il déclaré. Mais cela ne fournirait pas à Apple de processeurs pour les derniers iPhones de 2018, conçus depuis que les deux ont commencé à se disputer les brevets, a-t-il déclaré.

"La stratégie consistait également à utiliser deux sources en 2018", a déclaré Williams en janvier. "Nous travaillions dans ce sens avec Qualcomm, mais au final, ils ne nous ont pas soutenus et ne nous ont pas vendu de jetons."

Les commentaires de Williams semblaient contredire le témoignage de Steve Mollenkopf, président-directeur général de Qualcomm, plus tôt dans le procès de la FTC. Il a déclaré à la barre qu'à compter du printemps 2018, Qualcomm tentait toujours de remporter un contrat fournissant des puces pour iPhone mais qu'il n'avait "aucune nouvelle activité" d'Apple depuis l'expiration de ses contrats précédents. En raison des limites de la date de preuve du procès, il n'a pas été autorisé à discuter de l'état actuel des affaires de Qualcomm avec Apple.

D'autres dirigeants de Qualcomm ont fait part de leurs commentaires ces derniers mois sur leur volonté de fournir des processeurs à Apple.

Lors d'un appel à résultats en juillet 2018, Cristiano Amon, responsable des ventes de puces de Qualcomm, a déclaré que "si l'occasion se présentait, je pense que nous serions un fournisseur d'Apple". Et en septembre, le chef des finances, George Davis, a déclaré lors d'une conférence Citi: "nous nous féliciterions de l'engagement avec Apple sur la 5G".

Alors que de nombreux observateurs du marché s'attendent à ce qu'Apple commercialise un iPhone 5G en 2020, il est à craindre que la puce d'Intel ne soit prête avant la gamme 2021 d'Apple. Cela mettrait Apple à environ deux ans de retard sur les vendeurs Android.

Si Apple perçoit des frais de licence moins élevés, paierions-nous moins pour les iPhones?

C'est probablement un gros non. Apple a plus d'influence sur les prix lorsqu'il a deux fournisseurs à se jouer. Il est hautement improbable que cela nous répercute sur toutes ces économies.

Lorsque Apple a lancé son iPhone X à la fin de 2017, certains se sont demandé si le prix de 999 $ effraierait les consommateurs. Au lieu de cela, l’iPhone X est devenu l’appareil le plus vendu depuis son arrivée dans les magasins jusqu’à la fin du mois de juin, alors qu’il s’agissait du téléphone le plus cher vendu par Apple.

L’appareil de 5,8 pouces coûtait 300 $ de plus que l’iPhone 8 de 4,7 pouces et 200 $ de plus que l’iPhone 8 de 5,5 pouces. Apple a suivi cette année avec l'iPhone XS et le plus grand et encore plus cher XS Max, qui commence à 1 099 $.

Face au ralentissement des ventes d’iPhone, Apple doit générer plus d’argent avec chaque appareil vendu. Au début du mois de janvier 2019, la société avait émis un rare avertissement – son premier en 16 ans – de ne pas atteindre ses prévisions financières au mois de décembre. Plus tard dans le même mois, il a annoncé que ses ventes au mois de mars seraient également inférieures aux prévisions des analystes. Il a souligné que le ralentissement économique en Chine et "la montée des tensions commerciales avec les États-Unis" en étaient les principaux responsables.

Même si Apple paye moins pour les brevets, cela ne veut pas dire que ces économies seront bénéfiques. Ses prix plus élevés sont susceptibles de rester ici.

Première publication le 9 juillet 2017.
Mise à jour, le 1er mars 2019 à 5h30, heure du Pacifique: Ajoute des détails sur les développements récents, y compris le procès FTC-Qualcomm, et note les dates des procès imminents en mars et avril.
Mise à jour du 11 avril 2019 à 5 heures, heure de Paris: Ajoute des détails sur les développements récents, y compris le procès de brevet de mars et le procès de licence en avril et mai.
Mise à jour du 16 avril 2019 à 14 h 46. PT: Ajoute des nouvelles du règlement, des ajustements tout au long. Mise à jour du 16 avril 2019 à 15h46. PT: Ajoute des nouvelles des tests de puces Qualcomm d’Apple. Mise à jour du 16 avril 2019 à 17h19. PT: Ajoute des nouvelles d'Intel quittant le secteur des modems téléphoniques 5G.