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South Korea: LG replaces Samsung in antitrust suit against Qualcomm

By  |  January 2, 2019

LG is the latest smartphone maker to join the Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) and other companies in a lawsuit against Qualcomm. While Samsung’s withdrawal didn’t do the lawsuit any favors, LG’s new stance strengthens the KFTC’s case again, particularly with LG being a Korean company.

According to Business Korea, industry sources claim that LG chose to participate in the legal efforts against Qualcomm due to shaky negotiations in between LG and Qualcomm in the US.

Qualcomm’s ongoing legal fight with Apple recently resulted in Apple’s iPhones being banned in China and possibly Germany. The chip-maker alleges that Apple incorrectly used two key Qualcomm patents without paying royalties. The affected devices include all iPhones from the iPhone 6S to the iPhone X, all of which were banned from being sold in China.

The KFTC slapped Qualcomm with a 1.03 trillion won fine (US$917.4 million) for abusing its patents back in 2016.

Full Content: Business Korea

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