Intel accuses Qualcomm of "stifling competition" following iPhone bans in China and Germany

Earlier this month, Qualcomm successfully won in their attempts to have some models of iPhones banned in China and is continuing efforts to include more models in that ban and to have the iPhone ban solidified in the eyes of all of China's courts. The processor company has also been seeking bans in the US, which so far have been unsuccessful, and Germany, where a partial ban has finally been placed. Apple's partner Intel, which makes modems for iPhones, denounced Qualcomm's patent litigation in a Newsroom article entitled "Another Attempt to Stifle Competition." Intel VP Steven Rodgers in his article says

Qualcomm’s goal is not to vindicate its intellectual property rights, but rather to drive competition out of the market for premium modem chips, and to defend a business model that ultimately harms consumers. As we’ve noted before, in the last several years, Qualcomm has been fined nearly a billion dollars in China, $850 million in Korea, $1.2 billion by the European Commission and $773 million in Taiwan (later reduced in a settlement) for anti-competitive practices.

While Intel is correct about Qualcomm having been fined several times, it is also true that Intel is no stranger to anti-competitive practices, most infamously in the mid 2000s when Intel bribed several OEMs such as HP and Dell to not use AMD products. Nonetheless, Intel and Apple could have a point if Qualcomm's lawsuits kill the iPhone and prevent people from buying them if they want one. Last year, the FTC charged Qualcomm with monopolizing modems just as Apple and Intel have claimed.

Source(s)