Qualcomm will pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit in which shareholders accused the chipmaker of deceiving and concealing its anticompetitive sales and licensing practices. This was reported by Reuters.

Shareholders accused the company of artificially inflating its share price between February 2012 and January 2017. Qualcomm has repeatedly described chip sales and technology licensing as separate businesses, when in fact the company combined them to reduce competition.

Apple and the Federal Trade Commission also filed separate lawsuits in January 2017 accusing the company of trying to monopolize the market for processors used in mobile smartphones. Apple also claimed that the company used its position to inflate chip prices and demanded expensive terms for technology licenses.

Qualcomm and six individual defendants, including former CEOs Paul Jacobs and Stephen Mollenkopf, denied wrongdoing and agreed to the settlement. As a result, neither the Federal Trade Commission nor Apple received any payments.

Despite the unsuccessful lawsuits filed by Apple and the US government, shareholders will still receive payments. On Tuesday, June 18, 2024, a preliminary settlement agreement was filed with the federal court in San Diego, which provides for the payment of $75 million in cash. This agreement requires approval by District Judge Jinsuk Ohta, who certified the lawsuit in March 2023.