Chip wars escalate: Qualcomm accuses Arm of unfair tactics

TL;DR

• Arm issued a 60-day notice to Qualcomm regarding the cancelation of their architectural license, which allows Qualcomm to design chips based on Arm’s technology.
• The move could impact Qualcomm’s ability to design Snapdragon processors for smartphones.
• Qualcomm has now commented on Arm’s intent to terminate the license.

In a statement to Android Authority, a Qualcomm spokesperson had this to say about the situation:

This is more of the same from ARM – more unfounded threats designed to strongarm a longtime partner, interfere with our performance-leading CPUs, and increase royalty rates regardless of the broad rights under our architecture license. With a trial fast approaching in December, Arm’s desperate ploy appears to be an attempt to disrupt the legal process, and its claim for termination is completely baseless. We are confident that Qualcomm’s rights under its agreement with Arm will be affirmed. Arm’s anticompetitive conduct will not be tolerated.

Much of what’s going on here stems from a dispute back in 2022. Arm filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm in 2022 after Qualcomm acquired a company called Nuvia in 2021. In the lawsuit, Arm accused the two of breaching contract terms, claiming that Nuvia’s chip designs used Arm licenses that Qualcomm tried to transfer over during its acquisition.