Qualcomm Inc on Wednesday aimed to show shareholders that its licensing practices still have a future after having come under scrutiny from antitrust regulators around the world as well as from major customer Apple Inc.
The disputes over the practices have even weakened Qualcomm’s financials enough to make it the target of a $103 billion hostile takeover bid from Broadcom Ltd.
Qualcomm, the world’s biggest supplier of mobile phone chips, said it has amended its patent licensing Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, the world’s No. 1 mobile handset maker. The news came just before Qualcomm released its fiscal first-quarter earnings, which were weighed down by its wide-ranging legal dispute with Apple and a weak sales outlook for smart phones sales in China.
Samsung and Qualcomm said they would expand their efforts to collaborate around 5G, the next generation of mobile data networks. As part of the agreement, Qualcomm said Samsung would also withdraw its interventions in Qualcomm’s appeal of a Korean Fair Trade decision in the Seoul High Court.
The deal to end hostilities stands out because Qualcomm’s at times contentious dealings with its customers have become a focal point in Broadcom’s takeover effort.
Published in Daily Times, February 2nd 2018.