Apple is 'Not in Talks' to Settle Legal Dispute With Qualcomm and is 'Gearing Up For Trial'

Apple and Qualcomm are not in talks "at any level" to settle a wide-ranging legal dispute spanning multiple countries, according to Reuters.

qualcomm iphone 7
The report cites an unnamed source on Apple's side who said "there is absolutely no meaningful discussion taking place between us and Qualcomm, and there is no settlement in sight," with Apple "gearing up for trial."

The case is set to go to trial early next year, should the companies fail to reach a resolution, according to the report.

Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf had told investors on the company's quarterly earnings call in July that the two companies were in talks to resolve the litigation. "We hope that through the combination of either those paths, we could get to a resolution, and we're confident that we will," he said at the time.

The saga began when Apple sued Qualcomm in January 2017 for allegedly withholding nearly $1 billion in royalty rebates as retaliation for Apple "responding truthfully to law enforcement agencies investigating them," referring to the FTC's investigation into Qualcomm's anticompetitive business practices.

Qualcomm countersued Apple in April 2017, accusing the company of failing to engage in good faith negotiations for a license to its 3G and 4G standard essential patents on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms. Qualcomm also accused Apple of encouraging regulatory attacks on its business in multiple countries.

Qualcomm's countersuit said Apple "could not have built the incredible iPhone franchise" without relying upon the chipmaker's "fundamental cellular technologies." Qualcomm went as far as alleging that Apple "contributed virtually nothing to the development of core cellular technology."

Qualcomm also accused Apple of making "misleading statements" about the performance of Qualcomm and Intel modems in iPhones. In testing, iPhone 7 models with Qualcomm's modem achieved faster wireless speeds than those with Intel's modem, but Apple said there was "no discernible difference" between the two.

Apple broadened its lawsuit against Qualcomm in June 2017, accusing the chipmaker of "double-dipping" with unfair patent licensing agreements. Apple said Qualcomm charged it royalties based on a percentage of the entire iPhone's value, despite supplying just a single component of the device - the wireless modem.

The legal dispute encompasses several other claims, including Qualcomm's allegation that Apple shared Qualcomm's trade secrets with Intel to help improve its LTE modems, allowing Apple to stop using Qualcomm's modems.

Qualcomm was the exclusive supplier of wireless modems in iPhones until the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, when Apple added Intel as a secondary supplier. Likely due to this legal dispute, Intel became the exclusive supplier of wireless modems starting with the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR.

Apple is reportedly $7 billion behind in royalties owed to Qualcomm as it withholds payments as a result of the legal dispute.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Monday June 30, 2025 1:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are less than three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Magsafe

iPhone 17 Pro's New MagSafe Design Revealed in Leaked Photo

Wednesday July 2, 2025 8:37 am PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to have a slightly different MagSafe magnet layout compared to existing iPhone models, and a leaked photo has offered a closer look at the supposed new design. The leaker Majin Bu today shared a photo of alleged MagSafe magnet arrays for third-party iPhone 17 Pro cases. On existing iPhone models with MagSafe, the magnets form a...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adds a Useful New Wi-Fi Feature to Your iPhone

Wednesday July 2, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 add a smaller yet useful Wi-Fi feature to iPhones and iPads. As spotted by Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach, sign-in details for captive Wi-Fi networks are now synced across iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. For example, while Weinbach was staying at a Hilton hotel, his iPhone prompted him to fill in Wi-Fi details from his iPad that was already...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Max Battery Capacity Leaked

Thursday July 3, 2025 5:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest ever battery in an iPhone, according to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post, the leaker listed the battery capacities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max through to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and added that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a battery capacity of 5,000mAh: iPhone 11 Pro Max: 3,969mAh iPhone 12 Pro Max: 3,687mAh...
iOS 18

Apple Releases Second iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Tuesday July 1, 2025 10:19 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. Apple has also released a second beta of macOS Sequoia 15.6. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible...
maxresdefault

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options...

Top Rated Comments

aUniqueName Avatar
87 months ago
No, I want to know why YOU think they can just steamroll through the tech industry and buy everyone out.
1) they have the money to
2) the USA a free country where free commerce is allowed (you live in china or something?)
3) everything is for sale if the price is right - that's just the facts of life buddy
4) its not "steamrolling" if its a mutual agreement
5) I want to know why you are so hostile to the idea of apple buying other companies???
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wigby Avatar
87 months ago
Because Apple already is a monopoly, it doesn't need to be even more so.
They are a monopoly of their own products just like Microsoft is a monopoly of Surface products, Google has a monopoly on Pixel laptops and Samsung has a monopoly on Galaxy phones. That is not a monopoly that harms consumers since healthy competition exists outside of iPhone and Mac products.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aUniqueName Avatar
87 months ago
Apple is not entitled to just buy any company you think it should.

Why do you think this way?
Apple is absolutely entitled to buy any company they want if the company is willing to sell.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
justperry Avatar
87 months ago
And then there's this:

U.S. court rules Qualcomm must license technology to rivals ('https://www.reuters.com/article/us-qualcomm-ftc/u-s-court-rules-qualcomm-must-license-technology-to-rivals-idUSKCN1NB2KP')


Because Apple already is a monopoly, it doesn't need to be even more so.
Since when?:confused:
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
87 months ago
Because Apple already is a monopoly, it doesn't need to be even more so.
If your understanding of monopoly is "get $200 when you pass Go", I can see how you'd come to that conclusion.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aUniqueName Avatar
87 months ago
Because Apple already is a monopoly, it doesn't need to be even more so.
Apple is far from a monopoly, there are dozens if not hundreds of pc and phone manufacturers out there for you to choose from - you could be using a windows PC and an android phone. But I see in your signature you are using a "Hackintosh"... you know why its called "Hackintosh"? cause when you run that, you are allowing hackers easy access into your icloud account...

I guess you don't realize that when you buy apple hardware with their software, what you are paying for is the most secure, hacker resistant ecosystem on the planet. They even deny governments' ability to access your devices. But hey, you may not care about those things so you should probably switch to windows and android.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)