Apple's iPhone manufacturers file counter suit against Qualcomm over patent fees

It could well be called a season of lawsuits in the Silicon Valley. From Apple vs Qualcomm to Uber vs Waymo, legal battles are making daily headlines in the tech industry. Well, here we are talking about the never-ending legal fight between Apple and Qualcomm that has another counter suit added to its portfolio.

Apple is now being joined by its Taiwan-based contract manufacturers- Compal Electronics, Hon Hai Precision Industries (Foxconn,) Pegatron Corp and Wistron Corp.- who have accused the San Diego company of overcharging for use of its cellular patents. Interestingly, Apple filed a motion with the Federal Court in San Diego on Tuesday to fold the case between Qualcomm and the contract manufacturers into Apple’s original lawsuit.

The legal actions are basically premised on the same allegations that Apple had made in its lawsuit against Qualcomm in January. Notably, in May, Qualcomm too had filed a lawsuit against the Apple's contract manufacturers, in which the chipmaker accused the companies of breaching their license agreements and withholding royalty payments after Apple instructed them to do so.

Last month, Apple filed a brief to its original lawsuit accusing Qualcomm of operating an illegal business model. Apple claimed that Qualcomm was "double-dipping" by charging both a patent license fee for the use of its technology and for the chip itself. This was followed by Qualcomm filing a complaint with the US International Trade Commission asking it to bar the import of some iPhones and other products into the US.

To know more about this escalating battle between Apple and Qualcomm, you can read these stories:

Apple files $1bn lawsuit again Qualcomm for overpricing

Why Qualcomm wants iPhone imports banned in the US?