Qualcomm Seeks to Ban iPhone Sales in China in Latest Legal Battle
The competition in the smartphone market has reached an all-time high, and it seems that tech giants are vying to increase their profits one way or another. Recent reports reveal that Qualcomm, who is the biggest supplier of chipsets used in phones, and Apple are locked in a tight legal battle that has reached the shores of China. Qualcomm is now seeking to have iPhone sales be banned in China on grounds of patent infringement.
According to Bloomberg, Qualcomm filed the complaint in a Chinese court last Sept. 29. The documents and information on it have not been released to the public. However, a spokesperson for Qualcomm said that Apple infringed on the patents for the technology for power management and iPhone Force Touch. These inventions are currently being utilized by Apple in their latest lineup of iPhones.
Although many experts believe that the complaint will not be recognized, Qualcomm's latest legal move would prove to be impactful to Apple should it be approved.
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"Apple believes deeply in the value of innovation, and we have always been willing to pay fair and reasonable rates for patents we use. In our many years of ongoing negotiations with Qualcomm, these patents have never been discussed and in fact were only granted in the last few months," an Apple spokesperson said, as reported by The Verge. "Regulators around the world have found Qualcomm guilty of abusing their position for years. This claim is meritless and, like their other courtroom maneuvers, we believe this latest legal effort will fail."
Qualcomm has been targeting various companies based on the grounds that the Apple spokesperson mentioned. Recently, they were fined $774 million by Taiwan's Fair Trade Commission, and they have become notorious for using their position in the market to exploit more profit from their partners.
