Qualcomm just got a bit of a break from the European Union’s antitrust police with the EU’s second-biggest court deciding to reduce their fine slightly from EUR 242 million down to EUR 238.7 million.
Qualcomm vs EU Antitrust Police
Qualcomm was accused by the EU gov’t of playing dirty by selling their 3G chips below cost just to keep their competitors out. Because of this, the EU slapped them with a pretty big fine. But the chipmaker fought back, arguing that the 3G chips on the market only accounted for 0.7% of the total market share making it too small to have a real impact on the market.
The court mostly agreed with the EU, but they did think the fine was a bit excessive. So, they knocked it down a bit. Qualcomm can still appeal to the EU’s top court if they’re not happy.
This isn’t the first time Qualcomm has faced antitrust trouble. A few years ago, they got hit with a massive fine for paying Apple to only use their chips in iPhones and iPads. But this time, they managed to convince the court to toss out that fine. Looks like they’re learning from their mistakes.
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