Qualcomm alleges Apple of stealing its chips' source code


By MYBRANDBOOK


Qualcomm alleges Apple of stealing its chips' source code

 

 

Qualcomm has registered a complaint in a Californian court accusing Apple of stealing modem-chip designs and giving them to Intel in order to help Intel make cellular chips that could be used in iPhones at lower prices than those charged by Qualcomm.

 

Qualcomm has supplied Apple with items such as processors for its iPhones and other hardware for years, but iPhone has started favoring Intel more recently.

 

The complaint was originally filed in November 2017. It accused Apple of violating a software agreement by refusing to let Qualcomm audit Apple's compliance with that agreement. Qualcomm suspected Apple of sharing trade secrets with Intel at the time, but the company said the lack of an audit hampered its ability to investigate the matter.

 

In the new court filing, Qualcomm has said Apple engineers supplied Intel staff with Qualcomm's confidential source code with the aim of improving the performance of Intel chips, despite a contract intended to restrict access to the technology. Qualcomm alleged the move was part of an "intricate plan" developed by Apple over several years, with the aim of cutting costs and increasing its leverage over Qualcomm.

 

Apple started switching from Intel to Qualcomm modem chips in iPhones and other devices in 2011 when it launched the Verizon version of the iPhone 4, Qualcomm said. But Apple began switching back to Intel chips in some iPhone models in 2016, apparently to get lower prices despite the Intel chips' lower performance. Qualcomm alleges that the switch to Intel in 2016 and Intel chip improvements since then were aided by Apple's illegal actions.

 

Apple has separately accused Qualcomm of abusing its market dominance in microchips. Its objections centre around the fees charged by Qualcomm for its technology. Intel has however declined to comment.


 

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