FTC Abandons Antitrust Lawsuit Against Qualcomm

The United States Federal Trade Commission is abandoning its antitrust lawsuit against Qualcomm, reports Bloomberg. The FTC will not seek a Supreme Court review of a 2020 federal appeals court decision that determined that Qualcomm's licensing practices are fair and not anticompetitive.

qualcomm iphone xs
In a statement, FTC chairwoman Rebecca Kelly Slaughter said that the FTC's conclusion that Qualcomm violated antitrust laws was correct, but the agency is facing "significant headwinds" attempting to get the appeals court ruling overturned.

"Given the significant headwinds facing the Commission in this matter, the FTC will not petition the Supreme Court to review the decision of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in FTC v. Qualcomm. The FTC's staff did an exceptional job presenting the case, and I continue to believe that the district court's conclusion that Qualcomm violated the antitrust laws was entirely correct and that the court of appeals erred in concluding otherwise. Now more than ever, the FTC and other law enforcement agencies need to boldly enforce the antitrust laws to guard against abusive behavior by dominant firms, including in high-technology markets and those that involve intellectual property. I am particularly concerned about the potential for anticompetitive or unfair behavior in the context of standard setting and the FTC will closely monitor conduct in this arena."

The FTC originally sued Qualcomm in 2017, accusing the company of using anticompetitive tactics to remain the main supplier for baseband processors for smartphones.

In May 2019, the FTC initially won its lawsuit against Qualcomm, with Judge Lucy Koh ordering Qualcomm to renegotiate all licensing terms with its customers and make patent licenses available to rival cellular modem suppliers on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory or "FRAND" terms. Qualcomm was also told not to enter exclusive agreements for the supply of modem chips.

Qualcomm appealed the ruling and in 2020, scored a major victory. The appeals court overturned Judge Koh's decision, and vacated the order mandating that Qualcomm re-establish all of its licensing deals.

The appeals court said that Koh's ruling went "beyond the scope" of antitrust law and that Qualcomm's licensing practices were not anticompetitive because Qualcomm is "under no antitrust duty to license rival chip suppliers."

With the FTC not planning to further pursue the case after the appeals court ruling, the four-year antitrust legal battle that Qualcomm has been facing is effectively over.

The FTC's lawsuit ran concurrent with the now-resolved legal dispute between Apple and Qualcomm. Apple accused Qualcomm of unfair licensing deals and overcharging for the iPhone components that it supplied to Apple, but Apple dropped the case and reached a settlement with Qualcomm in 2019 after it became clear there were no other options for 5G modems for use in 2020 iPhones.

Apple had planned to use Intel chips, but Intel was not able to produce the chips that Apple needed and ultimately sold its modem business to Apple for $1 billion. Apple plans to use Qualcomm chips for the next few iPhones, but the company is working on manufacturing its own modem chips in house for future devices.

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Skipped the iPhone 17 Pro? Here's What is Rumored for iPhone 18 Pro

Tuesday September 23, 2025 8:55 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. This story was published previously, and it has been updated to reflect the latest rumors. Many early rumors prove to be true, but nothing is confirmed yet, and Apple's...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.1 Update for iPhones Coming Soon — Here's What to Expect

Thursday September 25, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. MacRumors has also seen evidence of iOS 26.0.1 in its visitor logs in recent days. It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
Apple More Personal Siri Ad

Apple Responds to U.S. Class Action Lawsuit Over Delayed Siri Features

Friday September 26, 2025 6:57 am PDT by
In March, Apple delayed the launch of its personalized Siri features, and soon after the company was hit with multiple class action lawsuits over the situation. The plaintiffs said they never would have purchased an iPhone 16, or would have paid less, had they known Apple's marketing about the Siri features was false. In the U.S., all of the complaints were consolidated into one class...
apple tv 4k new orange

Next Apple TV Expected to Launch This Year With These New Features

Monday September 22, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
The next Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Likely Features N1 Chip With Wi-Fi 7 Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the next Apple TV would be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which is...

Top Rated Comments

GeoStructural Avatar
59 months ago
Remember when Apple pulled an Epic on Qualcomm and deliberately broke their licensing agreement unilaterally for considering it unfair... something for you to think about. At the end it was the user who lost by having to settle for lower quality modems.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PinkyMacGodess Avatar
59 months ago
This is disappointing... Is the FTC in need of some teeth?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
haunebu Avatar
59 months ago
I think the reason apple removed the headphones and charging adapter from the box is to make more money. They know the vast majority of us will buy the iPhone anyway, and pay extra for the accessories.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hot-gril Avatar
59 months ago

I know it’s cynical, but I think the reason apple removed the headphones and charging adapter from the box is to offset their settlement with Qualcomm. Yeah, I know correlation doesn’t equal causation but Qualcomm chips show back up in iPhones and the accessories diminish to just a cable.
Qualcomm settlement or not, Apple will want to make more money if there's a way.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wigby Avatar
59 months ago

I think the reason apple removed the headphones and charging adapter from the box is to make more money. They know the vast majority of us will buy the iPhone anyway, and pay extra for the accessories.
There's a difference between making more money and saving more money. Apple could be losing customers by not including conveniences that were once included in the box. But they are definitely saving money by not including them and hopefully putting that money towards tech that most customers care more about. I have a drawer full of chargers and EarPods so I'm happy to pay the same price for my next iPhone in exchange for something other than that junk.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mtneer Avatar
59 months ago
Wow.. wonder if QCOM will ask the court for reimbursement of its legal costs from taxpayers. All this pomp and circumstance over all these years for what?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)