Apple has paid about $ 5 to $ 6 billion to settle the Qualcomm dispute, plus $ 8 to $ 9 per iPhone in royalties

Apple would likely have paid between $ 5 and $ 6 billion to settle its legal battle with Qualcomm, according to estimates released today by UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri (via CNBC).

The payment of $ 5- $ 6 billion would have been for royalties that Apple had stopped paying during its two-year legal battle with Qualcomm.

Qualcomm could also receive between $ 8 and $ 9 per Apple iPhone in the form of ongoing patent royalties, a figure calculated from the indications provided by Qualcomm following the settlement. Qualcomm said it expects earnings per share to rise $ 2.

Previously, Apple paid $ 7.50 in royalties. Thus, at a price between 8 and 9 dollars per iPhone, Apple would spend more money than before.

Apple seems to have had no choice but to settle with Qualcomm, having no other way to get 5G chips for its 2020 iPhone range. Apple had originally planned to use Intel chips, but rumors would have suggested that Intel would not achieve its development goals, which would have created a tension between Apple and Intel.

Just hours after Apple and Qualcomm announced a settlement agreement, Intel announced that it was pulling out of the 5G smartphone modems market and that it would not manufacture 5G smartphone chips. .

It's not entirely clear if Apple settled with Qualcomm because it was aware of Intel's plan to abandon the development of 5G chips or if Intel had made the decision after learning Apple's settlement plans, but in either case, Apple will leave no choice but to re-adopt Qualcomm chips. for future iPhones.

Smartphone manufacturers such as Samsung will have 5G smartphones starting this year. Apple could not afford to delay the deployment of its 5G iPhones. The launch in 2020 already leaves behind Apple, but the 5G networks of American operators are still in full development.

Following the announcement of the settlement, Qualcomm's shares rose by more than 38%, a big win for San Diego. The agreement includes a six-year license agreement as well as a "multi-year chipset provision agreement".

It seems that Apple will have to rely on Qualcomm for the foreseeable future, but Apple is working on its own modem chip technology, which could eventually allow it to lose Qualcomm as a modem chip provider.