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Approximately 30 million individuals in the United Kingdom who acquired an Apple Inc. and/or Samsung smartphone from the year 2015 and 2024 could be eligible to about seventeen pounds per claimant should a buyer watchdog wins in its lawsuit against the American corporation Qualcomm.

Legal Action Begins Today

The campaign is escalating the tech giant to the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London this week.

The trial involving the advocacy organization and Qualcomm is projected to run for over a month.

The group is accusing the semiconductor firm of unfair competition.

The group asserts that the firm compelled Apple Inc. and Samsung to pay high fees and royalty payments for necessary mobile hardware, which then pushed up the price of those devices for buyers.

Key Points the Legal Action Will Examine

The trial beginning now will focus on whether Qualcomm held market power and, should that be the case, whether it exploited a leading role.

In the event that the consumer group is victorious, there will be a subsequent step aiming to obtain 480 million pounds from Qualcomm, to be distributed among an approximate twenty-nine million UK smartphone users impacted.

The body is seeking damages for all impacted Apple and Samsung smartphones acquired between October 1, 2015 and 9 January 2024.

The organization estimates this would likely work out at approximately seventeen pounds per person.

Past Cases and The Firm's Response

The chipmaker has previously said the legal action has "no basis".

A parallel case against Qualcomm is ongoing in the Canadian courts, and the corporation has also in the past been sanctioned by the European Union for antitrust practices.

The US regulator in the US filed a case against the firm for restrictive tactics in the way it licensed its patents during the year 2017, but had its claim rejected in the year 2020.

Impact of the Case

The chief executive of the watchdog stated: "This case is a significant event. It demonstrates how the power of consumers - represented by our organization - can be used to require the biggest companies to be accountable if they exploit their leading role."

The chipmaker is one of the largest global manufacturers of smartphone chips and has faced claims about anti-competitive behaviour previously.

• Affected handsets include Apple & Samsung models purchased between the end of 2015 and the start of 2024.
• The overall compensation being sought is £480m.
• Per-person compensation is estimated to be around £17.
• The trial is being held at the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London.