U.S. trade officials have agreed to investigate Qualcomm’s allegations that Apple infringed on patents with its iPhone7 and other devices, the U.S. International Trade Commission said on Tuesday.
The ITC will make its decision “at the earliest practicable time” and will set a target date for completing its investigation within the next 45 days, the commission said in a statement.
Qualcomm filed the complaint in early July, asking U.S. trade regulators to ban certain models of the iPhone that contain so-called broadband modem chips, which help phones connect to wireless data networks, that were not made by Qualcomm. Apple began using broadband modem chips made by Intel Corp in the iPhone 7.
Qualcomm has not alleged that Intel chips violate its patents but says the way Apple uses them in the iPhone does.
Apple, Intel and Qualcomm did not immediately return requests for comment.
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As the ITC considered whether to take up the case, a group representing Alphabet’s Google, Amazon.com, Microsoft and Facebook sided last month with Apple, saying Qualcomm’s request to bar the import of some iPhones would hurt consumers.
In turn, Qualcomm accused the group of “a coordinated effort aimed at misdirecting” the trade regulators. It said Apple was free to choose chips from a variety of vendors without necessarily infringing Qualcomm’s patents.
The fight before trade regulators in Washington is one of several major legal battles involving Qualcomm and Apple. The two companies have cases pending before separate federal courts in California, and Qualcomm also faces a complaint from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
