Arm Threatens to Cancel Qualcomm’s Chip Design License
Oct. 23, 2024Amid Qualcomm’s ongoing Snapdragon Summit event, Arm Holdings has threatened the American chipmaker that it will cancel an architectural license that is used for developingSnapdragon X EliteandSnapdragon 8 Elitechipsets.Bloombergreports that Arm has given a 60-day notice of cancellation to Qualcomm.
Arm filed a lawsuit against both Qualcomm and Nuvia arguing that its original licensing terms with Nuvia were for server CPUs which is a lower-volume product. And that license is now being used to design higher-volume mobile chipsets like Nuvia-designed Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon 8 Elite. The royalty rate is different for server and mobile CPUs.
Since then, Qualcomm and Arm have failed to re-negotiate a new licensing term and the legal dispute is ongoing. The trial is scheduled to start in December this year. But just before the trial, Arm issued a cancellation notice to Qualcomm.
Reacting to the development, Qualcomm’s spokesperson said in an email statement, “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.“
The statement further reads, “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.“
Now, if the court rules in Arm’s favor, Qualcomm will be forced to stop shipments of its Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon 8 Elite processors, impacting both Windows and Android ecosystems.
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