EuropeanCommission to drop its Qualcomm case
THEEuropean Commission closed antitrust proceedings against Qualcomm yesterday, after big technology companies dropped their four-year old complaints against the US mobile chip supplier.
The Commission’s decision came as Ericsson, the world’s biggest mobile network equipment maker, and Texas Instruments, Qualcomm’s biggest wireless chip rival, both announced that they were withdrawing their complaints.
The case, which kicked off in October 2005 with complaints from six large companies about Qualcomm’s licensing practices, marks the end of some of Qualcomm’s biggest legal disputes, except from an ongoing battle with Japanese regulators.
The end of the case means Qualcomm could be in a better position to return more cash to shareholders through buybacks or a dividend increase, UBS analyst Maynar Um.