Qualcomm’s FTC lawsuit dismissal has been denied today by the Judge presiding over the case, which is Judge Lucy Koh. Though this particular case has been ongoing for months, the motion for dismissal of the lawsuit has only been presented by Qualcomm since the beginning of April. The decision to deny Qualcomm’s motion for dismissal of the FTC lawsuit may not have been a complete surprise. Qualcomm has been embroiled in a battle against the Federal Trade Commission since the middle of January when it officially charged Qualcomm with a lawsuit stating that the chip manufacturer had been engaging in anti-competitive practices.
A denial of the motion for dismissal of the FTC’s lawsuit means that Qualcomm’s case will have to continue, but it’s also reported that a vote to withdraw the case may have a chance at being presented by Maureen Ohlhausen who is currently the acting chair of the Federal Trade Commission. For now there is no certainty on how the case between Qualcomm and the FTC will turn out, but it isn’t likely to be resolved anytime in the immediate future.
Now that the case must continue to move forward it’s entirely possible that Qualcomm could end up losing the case and have to pay a fine deemed appropriate in relation to the outcome should it actually lose. If that happens it wouldn’t be the first time that Qualcomm has had to pay out a fine in regards to anti-competitive practices as it’s already paid a rather large sum to the Korea Federal Trade Commission last year in the amount of $854 million. If Qualcomm has to pay a fine in this ongoing case against the FTC it’s unknown exactly how much the fine could end up being, though it most certainly wouldn’t be a small amount by any means. If Qualcomm loses this case it would also mark the third time it has had to pay a fine over these particular measures, as it also paid a fine to China in the amount of $954 million. With that being said, the fine from the FTC could end up being somewhere in the same range.