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Qualcomm Accused of Anti-Competitive Practices

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Qualcomm forced Apple to use its chips exclusively in return for lower licensing fees, unfairly cutting out competitors, the U.S. said in a lawsuit against the biggest maker of mobile phone chips. Qualcomm’s exclusive deal with Apple was detailed in a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit accusing the chipmaker of illegally maintaining a monopoly for semiconductors used in mobile phones and pocketing elevated royalties from customers.

“Qualcomm recognized that any competitor that won Apple’s business would become stronger, and used exclusivity to prevent Apple from working with and improving the effectiveness of Qualcomm’s competitors,” the FTC said in the lawsuit filed Tuesday.

The lawsuit presents yet another regulatory challenge to Qualcomm’s most lucrative business, technology licensing. The chipmaker gets most of its profits from selling the rights to use patents that are essential to all modern mobile phone systems. Qualcomm has argued that its licensing follows industry standards that have been in place for more than 20 years and are used by other companies.

Last month, South Korea, home to two of Qualcomm’s largest customers, fined the San Diego-based company 1.03 trillion won ($890 million) and described its practices as monopolistic. Qualcomm has said it would appeal that decision. The chipmaker is also the subject of investigations by the European Union and Taiwanese authorities.

Qualcomm said in a statement that it would fight the FTC’s complaint, which it said is based on flawed legal theory and seeks to advance the interests and bargaining power of mobile-phone manufacturers. “This is an extremely disappointing decision to rush to file a complaint on the eve of Chairwoman Ramirez’s departure and the transition to a new administration, which reflects a sharp break from FTC practice,” said Qualcomm General Counsel Don Rosenberg.

Qualcomm is the biggest developer of the technology that underlies how mobile devices communicate. The company has been heavily criticized for its high royalty-rate demands and licensing conditions, which have led to a slew of regulatory investigations worldwide.

The chipmaker has argued that the beneficiaries of regulatory action — phone-makers — have struck new deals that acknowledge the validity of Qualcomm’s patents. The company contends users of its technology benefit from its heavy spending on research and development.

The crux of the FTC’s case against Qualcomm is the claim that it offered Apple rebates on licensing fees in return for it exclusively using Qualcomm modem chips in the iPhone from 2011 to 2016. Citing agreements between the two companies, the FTC said in its complaint that Qualcomm intended to create “de facto exclusive deals that were as effective as express purchase requirements and that effectively foreclosed Qualcomm’s competitors from gaining processor business at Apple.”

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Huawei to Launch Next-Generation Foldable Smartphone at Dubai Launch Event

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Huawei is set to host a highly anticipated launch event in Dubai this December, where the company will unveil several innovative products that promise to redefine the tech landscape. The event marks a pivotal moment for the brand, unveiling groundbreaking products like the HUAWEI Mate X6, HUAWEI FreeBuds Pro 4, and HUAWEI nova 13 Series. The new products will set new benchmarks for design, functionality, and user experience in the mobile and audio markets.

As Huawei continues solidifying its position as a leader in the tech industry, this launch will underscore the company’s expanding influence in international markets. Huawei’s latest flagship foldable, the HUAWEI Mate X6, will be unveiled during the Dubai launch. The phone is expected to redefine the future of foldable smartphone technology. It is among the company’s most advanced foldables to date. The Mate X6 is expected to take mobile photography to new heights, building on Huawei’s legacy of pioneering smartphone cameras of the Mate Series.

Besides the Mate X6, Huawei will unveil its next-generation audio products, including the HUAWEI FreeBuds Pro 4. These earbuds will be the first to feature HUAWEI SOUND, offering an immersive audio experience. They will also include AI-driven noise reduction technology, designed to isolate the wearer’s voice during calls while eliminating environmental noise. This feature significantly enhances call quality, particularly in noisy environments.

Consumers can also look forward to the launch of the HUAWEI nova 13 series, a new midrange smartphone that brings a unique interweaving design and an array of exciting features. The nova 13 series offers significant upgrades over its predecessors, including enhanced camera capabilities, a performance boost, and more. The new HUAWEI MatePad 11.5 will also deliver a paper-like experience, perfect for light office productivity, efficient learning, and everyday tasks.

The Dubai event, scheduled for the 12th of December, will mark the global unveiling of Huawei’s several innovative products. The MEA market is one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic regions for technology, and Huawei is committed to strengthening its regional presence. By continuing to introduce groundbreaking products, Huawei is positioning itself to shape the future of mobile technology while reinforcing its role as a global tech powerhouse.

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The Browser Company Unveils Dia, Its AI-Powered Browser

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The Browser Company, known for its Arc Browser available on desktop and mobile, has unveiled its upcoming web browser called Dia, which focuses heavily on AI tools. Having previously launched Arc on Mac and Windows, and Arc Search on iOS and Android, the company is now working on a new product aimed at a broader audience.

Scheduled for an early 2025 release, Dia promises to bring a host of innovative features. The company recently launched a new website showcasing a video about Dia and listing various open roles within the company. The website states, “AI won’t exist as an app. Or a button. We believe it’ll be an entirely new environment — built on top of a web browser.” This vision for an integrated AI environment is a key component of Dia’s development.

In a video presentation, CEO Josh Miller demonstrated some of Dia’s early prototypes. One tool operates at the insertion cursor, aiding users in writing the next sentence or retrieving facts from the internet about topics such as the original iPhone’s launch and specifications. Additionally, the tool can fetch Amazon links opened in the browser to include in emails with basic descriptions.

Another feature allows users to type commands into the address bar to perform various actions, such as fetching documents, sending emails through the preferred email client, and scheduling meetings using natural language prompts. While some of these features may seem similar to existing browser-based writing and calendar tools, the true uniqueness and usefulness of Dia will only be known upon its release.

A more ambitious demo showcased Dia’s ability to perform actions on the user’s behalf, such as adding items from an email to an Amazon cart. In the demo, Dia browses Amazon, finds the specified items, and adds them to the cart autonomously. Another example demonstrated Dia’s capability to email participants listed in a Notion table for a video shoot. The Browser Company is not alone in envisioning an AI assistant capable of understanding interfaces and executing tasks. Many startups have showcased similar concepts and demos of AI models and tools designed to control users’ screens.

In a recent video, Miller hinted at developing new products for a wider audience while assuring current users that Arc’s design and functionality would remain largely unchanged. He acknowledged that although Arc has a dedicated and growing user base, its complexity might not appeal to everyone. The challenge for the company will be to create a browser with AI features that work seamlessly and potentially generate revenue.

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Apps

Google Maps Integrates Waze Incident Reports for Enhanced Navigation

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Google Maps has started to display Waze incident reports during navigation, allowing users to contribute by confirming road conditions via prompts. This integration follows Google’s July announcement that both apps would share more data, including Waze-sourced road closures, construction updates, speed cameras, and police presence information.

Over the holiday weekend, a Reddit user shared a screenshot of a prompt indicating “Police reported ahead” based on Waze driver reports, as reported by 9to5Google and Android Authority. Users can update these reports to reflect current conditions, similar to other incident notifications in Google Maps.

This is the first confirmed sighting of the feature in action, but more reports are expected. Despite merging the teams behind Maps and Waze, Group Project Manager Can Comertoglu told The Verge that the apps will continue to operate separately. Waze’s 500,000-plus contributors prefer some features of Waze over Google Maps, and vice versa.

This new feature enhances Google Maps’ functionality by leveraging Waze’s real-time incident reporting, providing users with more comprehensive and up-to-date information on their routes.

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