Apple will continue iPhone sales in China, despite Qualcomm battle
Tech giant Apple said on Monday that it would continue to sell all of its iPhone models in China despite Qualcomm’s announcement that it had won an injunction against Apple on the importation and sale of certain products.
“Qualcomm's effort to ban our products is another desperate move by a company whose illegal practices are under investigation by regulators around the world," Apple said in a statement. "All iPhone models remain available for our customers in China. Qualcomm is asserting three patents they had never raised before, including one which has already been invalidated. We will pursue all our legal options through the courts."
The company emphasized there was no impact from the ruling.
Amid a broader selloff in stocks, Apple was trading lower, while Qualcomm was in the green during the morning hours of Monday’s trading session.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 169.89 | +0.87 | +0.51% |
| QCOMM | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. |
San Diego-based chipmaker Qualcomm on Monday said it had won a preliminary injunction against Apple in Chinese courts, which found that Apple infringed on two Qualcomm-held patents. The chipmaker cheered the decision on Monday, alleging Apple has benefited from its intellectual property.
“Apple continues to benefit from our intellectual property while refusing to compensate us," Qualcomm's executive vice president and general counsel said in a statement. "These Court orders are further confirmation of the strength of Qualcomm’s vast patent portfolio.”
Apple’s newest products appeared to be excluded from the ban because they were released after the case was filed in 2017. The affected devices are the iPhone 6S through the iPhone X.
Monday’s skirmish is the latest in an ongoing feud between the two tech companies. Qualcomm has filed dozens of patent-related lawsuits against Apple in China, in addition to those addressed on Monday. The chipmaker has also filed complaints in the U.S.