Intel and Samsung back FTC lawsuit against Qualcomm
Rival chipmakers claim Qualcomm unfairly uses its patents to stay atop the mobile chip industry.
The Federal Trade Commission kicked off 2017 by targeting Qualcomm over allegedly anti-competitive behavior, and unsurprisingly, companies the chipmaker competes with agree. Intel and Samsung filed briefs supporting the FTC lawsuit, claiming that Qualcomm uses its dominant position in the mobile processor industry to squeeze others out.
In a post on its website, Intel said: "Qualcomm has maintained an interlocking web of abusive patent and commercial practices that subverts competition on the merits." For its part, Samsung claimed that the reason you don't see its Exynos chips used by non-Samsung companies is because Qualcomm has refused to license the necessary technology.
Oh, and let's not forget, that all of this is happening while Qualcomm trades lawsuits with its biggest customer Apple in a squabble over licensing fees. That's all part of a tough 2017 for the usually high-flying company, but we'll learn more about how things will proceed when the FTC trial's hearing happens June 15th.
