14 DAY TRIAL // Apple and Qualcomm have recently settled their patent dispute, with the two also signing a new deal that would most likely bring a 5G iPhone closer to fruition.
While no specifics on the agreement were offered, UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri says there’s a high chance Qualcomm will make a great deal of money thanks to this settlement, as he estimates that Apple paid between $5 billion to $6 billion to have all litigation dropped.
And because the collaboration between Apple and Qualcomm will continue, the Cupertino-based tech giant will continue to pay royalties for the tech it uses on the iPhone.
The analyst says that Qualcomm will receive between $8 and $9 per each iPhone in patent royalties, so the San Diego chipmaker would easily make a fortune by simply having its technology used on Apple’s smartphone.
Apple and Qualcomm tight-lipped on their deal
Neither Apple nor Qualcomm shared any specifics on their agreements in the settlement announcement.
“Qualcomm and Apple today announced an agreement to dismiss all litigation between the two companies worldwide. The settlement includes a payment from Apple to Qualcomm. The companies also have reached a six-year license agreement, effective as of April 1, 2019, including a two-year option to extend, and a multiyear chipset supply agreement,” Apple said in a press release.
The collaboration between Apple and Qualcomm is projected to bring us the first iPhone with 5G support as soon as 2020. Sources familiar with the matter said Apple already requested its staff to start internal testing of Qualcomm’s chips, but analysts said the 2019 iPhone lineup is already in an advanced development stage and adding a 5G version isn’t possible.
Meanwhile, Intel, the company that was originally supposed to build a 5G modem for the iPhone, dropped the development of 5G chips for smartphones, choosing instead to focus on PCs and IoT devices.