When Apple announced a surprise deal with Qualcomm during opening statements for a trial between the two companies back in 2019, Apple was desperate. The plan it had to avoid Qualcomm by using a new 5G smartphone modem developed by Intel was not going well and besides, the company had already praised the quality of Qualcomm’s modems while testifying in court under oath. So Apple cratered, giving in to Qualcomm’s controversial “no license, no chips” policy.
Apple spent $1 billion to purchase most of Intel’s smartphone modem business
Apple and Qualcomm signed a six-year licensing agreement with a two-year option. And both parties agreed to a multi-year contract for Qualcomm to deliver modem chips to Apple.
