Qualcomm on Monday agreed to pay a record $975m fine to settle allegations by Chinese authorities that it violated the country’s anti-monopoly law, ending a two-year patents fight and helping send its shares up 3 per cent in after-market trading.
The deal allowed the US chipmaker to raise its revenue guidance for fiscal year 2015 to at least $26.3bn, up from $26bn, partly because it will make it easier to collect royalties from some Chinese manufacturers that had been underreporting their use of Qualcomm patents. Under the terms Qualcomm will cut the amount it charges Chinese manufacturers to license some of its patented technologies.
Analysts said the resolution with China’s National Development and Reform Commission was not as harsh as it could have been. Qualcomm depends heavily on revenue from licensing its patents and counts China as a key market given the number of fast-growing Chinese electronics manufacturers.