According to noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Intel's baseband chips are expected to power communications across Apple's entire 2018 iPhone lineup, a supplier switch that, if true, would deal a major blow to market leader Qualcomm.
Despite beating street estimates on the back of market diversification, Qualcomm stock is down in aftermarket trading as shareholders await the resolution of external issues including an ongoing Apple licensing dispute, government probes and a hostile takeover by competitor Broadcom.
The European Union on Wednesday announced that it determined chipmaker Qualcomm illegally shut out rivals when it paid Apple billions of dollars to stick with its LTE baseband chips for five years. Qualcomm will pay a hefty price for its misdeeds: 997 million euros, or $1.23 billion U.S.
The European Commission is reportedly preparing to sanction Qualcomm for anti-competitive practices in supplying components to Apple for use in its iPhones, with the antitrust watchdog potentially levying a fine against the chip producer of up to $2 billion.
Looking to reduce its reliance on legal foe Qualcomm, Apple is said to be eyeing a partnership with Taiwan's MediaTek, which could supply baseband modem chipsets for iPhones beginning in 2018.
A U.S. judge has approved sanctions against Apple, ordering the iPhone maker pay $25,000 for every day it doesn't produce requested documents in a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit against Qualcomm.
Qualcomm on Wednesday continued its legal assault against Apple with a pair of filings alleging infringement of in-house and purchased patents, including intellectual property developed by defunct portable device maker Palm.
On the heels of an Apple lawsuit claiming Qualcomm infringes on at least eight patents with its Snapdragon processors, Qualcomm on Wednesday lodged a patent suit against Apple targeting tech found in the latest iPhones.
Further escalating the legal war between the two companies, Apple on Wednesday launched a U.S. countersuit against Qualcomm, charging that the latter's Snapdragon processors — found in many Android phones — are in violation of at least eight patents.
Having talked with some of Qualcomm's biggest shareholders, Broadcom is allegedly considering offering more of its own stock to make an acquisition offer more palatable — which, if successful, could radically change up Apple's legal and technological outlooks.
While current iPhones are limited to 2x2 MIMO technology, Apple is now rumored to upgrade to 4x4 MIMO for its 2018 iPhone models, offering users the fastest cellular LTE speeds available yet in an iPhone.
Apple may completely ditch Qualcomm for a 5G modem in the future, with a new report claiming that iPhone engineers are working closely with Intel to deliver gigabit per second wireless speeds.
Apple cellular chip provider Qualcomm has turned down an unsolicited $103 billion takeover bid made by another Apple supplier, Broadcom, though that may not be the end of acquisition talks.
After a weekend of speculation, Broadcom has tendered what will likely be a hostile takeover fight for Qualcomm, in an offering valued at $130 billion including debt.
Chipmaker Broadcom is allegedly planning to bid for Qualcomm, in a move which could have major ramifications for the latter's ongoing legal battles with Apple.
Qualcomm has once again escalated the legal war with Apple surrounding modem chips in the iPhone and iPad, with the chip manufacturer now claiming that Apple is in breach of contract because of how it works with Intel — and what software has been shared with the competition.
Qualcomm posted quarterly earnings on Wednesday, noting a precipitous 89.7 percent decline in profits as the chipmaker faces a huge $778 million fine from Taiwanese regulators and an ongoing legal scrum with Apple.
Amidst an international legal fight against Qualcomm, Apple is said to be mulling a decision to drop the chipmaker's modems in next year's iPhone and iPad models after it was denied access to software used to test key communications components.
Apple COO Jeff Williams will reportedly be meeting with Foxconn chairman Terry Gou when he visits Taiwan later this month, where he's expected to bring up the topic of production bottlenecks possibly hurting the iPhone X.
In an interview on Tuesday, Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf commented on the chipmaker's fierce legal feud with Apple, saying that what appears to be an ever escalating international scrum is, at its core, about IP pricing.
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Mikey Campbell
Neil Hughes
Malcolm Owen
Roger Fingas
Mike Wuerthele
