Qualcomm CEO Mollenkopf 'On The Doorstep' Of Ending Bitter Legal War With Apple
However, we all know that there are backchannel communications between companies -- even during a dispute as bitter and public as the one between these two tech giants. With that in mind, Mollenkopf says that the pair are "on the doorstep" of coming to an agreement on all outstanding issues.
To put things into a sports analogy, Mollenkopf went on to say that the two companies are in "the fourth quarter of the game, and not the first quarter," while speaking with CNBC's Jim Cramer.
While all of this legal back-and-forth has been going on, Apple has increasingly distanced itself from Qualcomm components. Its most recent 2018 iPhones – the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max -- all use 4G LTE modem manufactured by Intel. Intel modems are also used in the LTE version of the 2018 iPad Pro family, and the Apple will reportedly rely on Intel 5G modems in its 2020 iPhone releases.
With that being said, Mollenkopf is confident that Qualcomm and Apple can come back to the table for a future working relationship on communications chips. "It's the opportunity to either be left behind or to make sure that you're part of that new generation. Of course, we work with everybody. We would love to work with Apple.
"The people that made, that embrace the new technology do the best. Of course, we try to provide that to everybody and there's an opportunity there with every OEM."
