Qualcomm countersues ARM: It is nonsense to use the lawsuit as a bargaining chip to violate the agreement

According to reports, Qualcomm countersued ARM on October 27, saying that ARM’s previous allegations that Qualcomm violated licensing agreements and trademarks had no legal basis.

​​

Qualcomm wants a federal judge in Delaware to find that the company did not violate ARM's licensing contracts as part of Qualcomm's $1.4 billion acquisition of chip startup Nuvia, court documents show.

​​

The point of contention between the two sides is the licensing of chip designs between ARM and Nuvia. Last month, ARM launched a lawsuit against Qualcomm and Nuvia, accusing the two companies of violating licensing agreements with ARM. Nuvia, a startup that Qualcomm acquired last year for $1.4 billion, designs chips based on Arm technology.

ARM asked Qualcomm to destroy designs developed under the Nuvia and Arm licensing agreement. ARM also said that even after months of negotiations, Qualcomm had not been granted the license. Moreover, Qualcomm is also inserting Nuvia's custom CPU design into its own chip production line without permission.

​​

Qualcomm’s lawyers said ARM’s goal was to “use this baseless lawsuit as leverage to force Qualcomm to renegotiate the financial terms of the license agreement that the parties have long been enforcing.”

​​

Qualcomm has been one of ARM's biggest customers in the past. Since Qualcomm and ARM are two of the most influential chip companies in the world, the case has drawn a lot of attention in the tech industry.

​​

Qualcomm bought Nuvia last year to strengthen its technology and enable it to develop more powerful chips. It's also part of Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amo's broader strategy to reduce Qualcomm's reliance on the smartphone industry and gain share in laptop chips and server processors.

​​

Qualcomm's lawyers say ARM's lawsuit is designed to thwart Qualcomm's plan. "Through this lawsuit, ARM has made it clear to the market that it will act recklessly and opportunistically as a negotiating tactic to stifle product development and innovation," Qualcomm said in its counterclaim filing.