Slowing iPhone sales have apparently claimed another victim among Apple suppliers, as iPhone modem supplier Intel today blamed lower-than-expected fourth quarter 2018 revenue on weak modem demand.
Outlined in an earnings presentation (PDF link), Intel reported revenue of $18.7 billion for the quarter ending in December. The figure is below analyst expectations of approximately $19.01 billion, as compiled by Refinitiv.
Intel blamed the revenue shortfall on “weaker modem demand, slowdown in China, cloud customers absorbing capacity, and weakening NAND environment.”
During a conference call on Thursday, Intel CFO and interim CEO Bob Swan said revenue from modem sales was well below expectations due to slow smartphone demand, reports CNBC. Specifically, modem revenue was around $200 million less than anticipated.
Apple made the move to an all Intel modem lineup for its 2018 iPhones, in the wake of an ongoing patent struggle with former modem supplier Qualcomm.
Apple in January cut revenue guidance for fiscal Q1 of 2019, due to lower-than-expected iPhone sales. Since then, a number of iPhone supply partners have begun warning of lowered income expectations for the quarter ending December.
