Earlier today, Apple announced it had reached a deal to end litigation with Qualcomm over their unpaid royalty rebates and patent licensing disputes. Now comes a report from Nikkei that says the agreement means Apple will use Qualcomm’s 5G modem in their 2020 iPhone lineup.
The report claims the two companies had been negotiating today’s settlement “for weeks,” finalizing it today. As the talks moved forward, Apple reportedly began testing Qualcomm’s 5G modem chips, and asked some of its suppliers to also test the chipmaker’s product.
“It is too late for Apple to use Qualcomm’s chips this year, but for 2020 it will purchase modem chips, including 5G modem chips, from the chipmaker for iPhones after finalizing the deal,” a source with direct knowledge of the settlement plan told Nikkei.
Due to the ongoing legal battle with Qualcomm, it had been expected that Apple would rely on Intel for 5G modems. However, Intel struggled to meet its deadlines, and it wasn’t clear whether they would have the modems ready for the 2020 iPhone.