Apple's Beats brand in April unveiled the Powerbeats Pro, a redesigned wire-free version of its popular fitness-oriented Powerbeats earbuds.
Qualcomm Asks China to Stop Manufacturing and Selling iPhones via New Lawsuits
Qualcomm recently filed lawsuits in China in an attempt to stop Apple from selling and manufacturing iPhones in the country, reports Bloomberg. Much of Apple's iPhone assembly process takes place in China, as does the manufacturing of many iPhone components. China is also an important market for Apple, accounting for 22.5 percent of Apple's sales in 2016.
In a filing with the Beijing intellectual property court on September 29, Qualcomm claimed patent infringement and requested injunctive relief. "Apple employs technologies invented by Qualcomm without paying for them," said a Qualcomm spokesperson about the filing.
According to Qualcomm, the lawsuits are based on three non-standard essential patents covering power management and the Force Touch technology that Apple uses in its touch screens.
Qualcomm and Apple have been embroiled in an escalating legal battle since the beginning of this year after the FTC complained that Qualcomm engaged in anticompetitive licensing practices. Shortly after, Apple sued Qualcomm for $1 billion and accused the company of charging unfair royalties for "technologies they have nothing to do with" and failing to pay for quarterly rebates.
Apple stopped paying licensing fees to Qualcomm at that time, as did Apple suppliers. Apple maintains that Qualcomm charges excessive licensing fees by requesting a percentage of an iPhone's entire value, while Qualcomm says its technology is "at the heart of every iPhone."
Qualcomm has since countersued and filed several patent infringement lawsuits against Apple. Qualcomm has also asked the United States International Trade Commission to block imports of some iPhone and iPad models.
Qualcomm is also facing an FTC lawsuit in the U.S. for using anticompetitive tactics to remain the dominant supplier of baseband processors for smartphones and was recently fined $773 million in Taiwan for violating antitrust rules.
In a filing with the Beijing intellectual property court on September 29, Qualcomm claimed patent infringement and requested injunctive relief. "Apple employs technologies invented by Qualcomm without paying for them," said a Qualcomm spokesperson about the filing.
According to Qualcomm, the lawsuits are based on three non-standard essential patents covering power management and the Force Touch technology that Apple uses in its touch screens.
Qualcomm and Apple have been embroiled in an escalating legal battle since the beginning of this year after the FTC complained that Qualcomm engaged in anticompetitive licensing practices. Shortly after, Apple sued Qualcomm for $1 billion and accused the company of charging unfair royalties for "technologies they have nothing to do with" and failing to pay for quarterly rebates.
Apple stopped paying licensing fees to Qualcomm at that time, as did Apple suppliers. Apple maintains that Qualcomm charges excessive licensing fees by requesting a percentage of an iPhone's entire value, while Qualcomm says its technology is "at the heart of every iPhone."
Qualcomm has since countersued and filed several patent infringement lawsuits against Apple. Qualcomm has also asked the United States International Trade Commission to block imports of some iPhone and iPad models.
Qualcomm is also facing an FTC lawsuit in the U.S. for using anticompetitive tactics to remain the dominant supplier of baseband processors for smartphones and was recently fined $773 million in Taiwan for violating antitrust rules.
Tag: Qualcomm
[ 120 comments ]
Top Rated Comments
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22 months ago
Qualcomm is behaving like some of my Ex’s after the relationship ended, always acting like some parts of me were their intellectual property and now I’m not allowed to use it.
22 months ago
China will never do something that hurts their manufacturing sector. Specially from a product them employs hundreds of thousands there.
22 months ago
Lol, asking CHINA to enforce IP protections...Good luck with that, hahahaha.
22 months ago
I don't know if Qualcomm thinks they are invincible or what but all these aggressive lawsuits are just going to expedite Apple's desire to replace their modems entirely.
22 months ago
China. Patents.
Yea they sure do care about those. Good luck in court.
Not taking sides just saying.
Yea they sure do care about those. Good luck in court.
Not taking sides just saying.
22 months ago
If Qualcomm were based in China, this might have a snowball's chance. As it stands, a US company with a load of patents it uses to tax almost everything produced in China is suing a US company that injects billions of dollars into the Chinese economy every year. A company that is already toying with diversifying where it produces phones... that's a less-than-zero chance of success.
I could even see this backfiring somehow, just given the political situation in China and their unpredictability at the best of times.
I could even see this backfiring somehow, just given the political situation in China and their unpredictability at the best of times.
22 months ago
Qualcom, in contrast to Timmy Cook's Apple, actually invents and manufactures.
One word is sufficient to say what I think of this post.
Bullocks.
22 months ago
I am not sure if it's justified or due to slanted news articles, it just feels like Qualcomm is a slimy company.
22 months ago
"Hey China, could you put several hundred thousands of your citizens out of work, in order to give us a bargaining chip in a fight we're having with another company?" - I don't see that playing out very well.
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