Commission fines Qualcomm €997 million for abuse of dominant market position

Further information:

The European Commission concluded that the company prevented rivals from competing in the market by making significant payments to a key customer on condition it would not buy from rivals.

The fine in this case of € 997 439 000 takes account of the duration and gravity of the infringement, and is aimed at deterring market players from engaging in such anti-competitive practices in the future. The fine represents 4.9% of Qualcomm's turnover in 2017. The Commission also ordered Qualcomm to not engage in such practices or practices with an equivalent object or effect in the future.

The Commission opened its investigation in July 2015. In December 2015, the Commission sent to Qualcomm a Statement of Objections setting out its preliminary concerns, followed by a letter sent in February 2017 setting out additional factual elements relevant to the final decision.

Background information:

Baseband chipsets enable smartphones and tablets to connect to cellular networks and are used both for voice and data transmission. LTE baseband chipsets comply with the 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) standard.

Qualcomm was by this date the world's largest supplier of LTE baseband chipsets. But there are other chip manufacturers active in this market who have tried to challenge and compete with Qualcomm for customers.

The European Commission announced on 24 January 2018 it was fining Qualcomm €997 million for abusing its market dominance in LTE baseband chipsets.

European Commission: Statement by Commissioner Vestager on Commission decision to fine Qualcomm for abuse of market dominance in LTE baseband chipsets http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STATEMENT-18-427_en.htm

European Commission: Antitrust Cases: Case 40220 > Qualcomm (exclusivity payments) http://ec.europa.eu/competition/elojade/isef/index.cfm?fuseaction=dsp_result&policy_area_id=1&case_number=40220

Qualcomm: Press Release, 24.01.18: Qualcomm to Appeal European Commission Decision Regarding Modem Chip Agreement https://www.qualcomm.com/news/releases/2018/01/24/qualcomm-appeal-european-commission-decision-regarding-modem-chip-agreement

BBC News, 24.01.18: EU fines chipmaker Qualcomm £870m for Apple payments http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42806404

Jurist, 24.01.18: EU fines Qualcomm $1.23 billion for exclusive deal with Apple http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2018/01/eu-fines-qualcomm-123-billion-for-exclusive-deal-with-apple.php

Reuters, 24.01.18: EU fines chipmaker Qualcomm 997 million euro over exclusivity deal with Apple https://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKKBN1FD180

Politico, 24.01.18: EU’s Vestager hits Qualcomm with €997M fine https://www.politico.eu/article/vestager-hits-qualcomm-chipmaker-with-e997-million-fine-2/

Euronews, 24.01.18: Qualcomm fined almost €1bn by EU competition watchdog over Apple deal http://www.euronews.com/2018/01/24/qualcomm-fined-almost-a-billion-euros-by-the-european-commission

The Guardian, 24.01.18: Qualcomm fined €997m by EU for paying Apple to exclusively use its chips https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jan/24/qualcomm-fined-997m-by-eu-for-paying-apple-to-exclusively-use-its-chips

EUObserver [Opinion]: Vestager is right to hammer Qualcomm https://euobserver.com/opinion/140796

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