Samsung is backing Apple in the company's legal dispute with Qualcomm. The legal spat started earlier this year when the Federal Trade Commission accused Qualcomm of using its position in the market to force Apple to pay higher patent royalties for its baseband chips. Apple filed a $1 billion lawsuit against Qualcomm, the chipmaker filed a lawsuit in return.
Qualcomm denied all of Apple's allegations in its countersuit and accused it of withholding payments that were previously agreed upon.
The company also filed a complaint with the United States International Trade Commission seeking to ban sales of all iPhones in the United States that use chips “other than those supplied by Qualcomm affiliates.” Apple started using Intel chips with the iPhone 7.
Samsung is among the handful of major technology companies that have come out in support of Apple in its legal dispute with Qualcomm. Samsung is a member of the Computer & Communications Industry Association which counts companies such as Google, Amazon and Intel among its members. Interestingly, Apple is not a member of this association.
The association is now calling on regulators to reject Qualcomm's effort to have a ban implemented on the import of iPhones. They suggest that banning Apple from importing iPhones assembled outside the United States that use Intel chips would cause “significant shocks to supply” for phones and inevitably hurt consumers.
Qualcomm has not yet commented on the matter.
