This week, the tense situation between Qualcomm and ARM escalated to new levels. ARM reportedly canceled its chip design license to the chip maker, potentially affecting Oryon-powered SoCs. The latest developments on the matter include an official statement from ARM regarding its legal standoff with Qualcomm.
The confrontation over the development of Oryon custom cores and license transfers
A recent report claimed that ARM decided to cancel Qualcomm’s current chip design licenses. It all stems from the company’s failure to comply with ARM’s demands to renegotiate a contract. The latter claims that Qualcomm requires new authorization to use Nuvia licenses after acquiring them to power the development of custom CPU cores. This was the first step toward the birth of the Oryon architecture that powers the new Snapdragon 8 Elite and the Snapdragon X chips.
ARM asserts that Qualcomm is using its licenses without authorization because there was never a renegotiation. This points to technologies related to custom CPU cores. ARM demands a new deal or the destruction of Qualcomm’s latest Oryon designs. The company even intends to halt the sales of Snapdragon 8 Elite and Snapdragon X chips if its demands remain unfulfilled.
After learning of ARM’s position, Qualcomm issued an official statement (via @IanCutress on X). In short, a representative of the company said that they expect to resolve everything in court. A trial regarding this matter is scheduled for December. The representative also claimed that ARM’s lobbying actions are monopolistic.
ARM responds to Qualcomm with its own official statement
Now, ARM responded with a statement that justifies its position. “Following Qualcomm’s repeated material breaches of Arm’s license agreement, Arm is left with no choice but to take formal action requiring Qualcomm to remedy its breach or face termination of the agreement. This is necessary to protect the unparalleled ecosystem that Arm and its highly valued partners have built over more than 30 years. Arm is fully prepared for the trial in December and remains confident that the Court will find in Arm’s favor,” the company said.
The report on the termination of the chip design license mentioned a 60-day cancellation notice. This means that ARM is requiring Qualcomm to comply with its demands before said period. Otherwise, the sales of Snapdragon chips with Oryon cores could be in jeopardy. ARM’s latest statement suggests that it has not yet canceled the licenses. However, it is prepared to do so if no agreement is reached.
