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Qualcomm to receive minimum $4.5 billion in Apple patent settlement

A few weeks ago, and much to Intel’s surprise, both Qualcomm and Apple were able to come to a settlement over ongoing patent claims between the two companies.

The result of the settlement not only meant both companies had resolved whatever patent issues were deemed to be infringed upon, it also meant that Qualcomm would be assisting Apple with their mobile device plans, and in particular 5G-supporting modems for upcoming iPhones.

One of the other notable elements of this settlement is the money that Qualcomm will receive as a result, with revealing that it is set to get a minimum of $4.5 billion from their new friends at Apple. This was revealed during Qualcomm’s recent earnings call for Q2 2019.

As for why Apple would pay that much, reports suggest Apple was willing to pay that much in order to ensure that its future iPhone devices would be able to support 5G, with competitors like Huawei and Samsung already touting the broadband standard.

The latter got its modems from Qualcomm, and with Intel still a couple of years away from such technology, Apple decided to bite the bullet as it were.

The result is that Apple could now have a 5G-ready iPhone later this year, as opposed to 2020 or 2021 if it stuck with Intel.

Regarding the $4.5 billion, it’s relatively small change for Apple, with CNBC reporting that they have $225.4 billion lying around as cash on-hand.

As such, squashing their ongoing legal woes with Qualcomm, as well as securing 5G modems from them at the same time, seems a small price to pay in the greater scheme of things.

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