Apple is making zero effort to reach a settlement in its wide-ranging legal battle with Qualcomm.
The iPhone-maker used Qualcomm wireless chips in its devices for years, but the two sides recently started butting heads over how much Apple owes in royalties. Qualcomm alleges that Apple should pay it an additional $7 billion and it looks like it will have to go to war for every cent.
Sources at Apple allegedly told Reuters that Apple is not having talks on any level to reach a settlement with Qualcomm.
“There is absolutely no meaningful discussion taking place between us and Qualcomm, and there is no settlement in sight,” the person told Reuters. “We are gearing up for trial.”
Apple vs Qualcomm
The two tech companies are set to go to trial next year. A number of related legal actions have been brought up around the world as part of the case. At one point, Qualcomm unsuccessfully requested that all iPhone X units be banned from being imported into the U.S.
Qualcomm lost part of its iPhone chip business to Intel. Apple is using Intel’s modem in the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. The company also supposedly plans to use Intel’s 5G modem in the 2020 iPhone.
In July, Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf, told investors that Apple and Qualcomm were in talks to resolve the lawsuits. It appears that those talks have completely broken down.
Apple first sued Qualcomm back in January 2017, alleging it owed $1 billion in rebates. Apple then decided to withhold royalty payments for the Qualcomm modems it was using. Qualcomm followed with a series of lawsuits of its own.
Most recently, Qualcomm alleged that Apple stole its chip technology and passed it on to Intel. Specifically, it claims that Apple took “vast swaths” of confidential information and trade secrets, which it then used to improve the performance of chips made by one of Qualcomm’s biggest rivals.
