Qualcomm isn’t holding out any hope of continuing as Apple’s primary modem supplier and is expecting to lose that business in 2024.
Apple and Qualcomm have a contentious relationship, one filled with alternating deals and lawsuits. For the time being, Qualcomm is the primary provider of the modems Apple uses in its iPhones and iPads, but the Cupertino company has been working hard to build its own modems and end reliance on Qualcomm.
It appears those plans are closer to reality than ever before, according to Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon.
“We’re making no plans for 2024, my planning assumption is we’re not providing [Apple] a modem in ’24, but it’s their decision to make,” Amon told CNBC at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Apple bought Intel’s failed modem division after the latter exited the business, accusing Qualcomm of creating a “a web of anticompetitive conduct designed to allow Qualcomm to coerce customers, tilt the competitive playing field and exclude competitors, all the while shielding itself from legal scrutiny and capturing billions in unlawful gains.”
While there’s no love lost between Apple and Qualcomm, the latter is sure to feel a financial hit from losing the lucrative iPhone business.
