Qualcomm’s Business Model Is on Trial Over a $7.50 Fee
- IPhone maker’s complaint about fee follows deal Jobs accepted
- Chipmaker’s licensing revenue peaked in 2015 at $7.9 billion
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Apple Inc. didn’t mind paying a modest technology fee to Qualcomm Inc. when it first launched the iPhone, but times have changed.
Testimony in the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust case against Qualcomm reveals that Steve Jobs gladly agreed to the San Diego-based chipmaker’s request for a licensing royalty in 2007 when Apple’s chief executive needed chips for his company’s nascent smartphone.