Broadcom Slapped Down: Qualcomm Import Ban Lifted

It’s taken more than a year, but mobile specialist Qualcomm Inc.(QCOM) got some good news today when an appeals court threw out a U.S. import ban against the chipmaker. The ban stems from an ongoing patent infringement tussle with rival silicon provider Broadcom Corp.(BRCM)].

The decision may be popular: Broadcom’s taking on of the giant that is Qualcomm has had the effect of galvanizing the industry against Broadcom — no underdog story here. But the ban has left many that were dependent on licensing Qualcomm’s technology or selling Qualcomm’s phones swinging.

Since last June the International Trade Commission has enforced an import ban on some new handset models from Qualcomm, which has sparked some Qualcomm customers like Verizon Wireless to consider licensing Broadcom technology as a workaround, to avoid going without Qualcomm-chipped phones.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has asked the ITC to review the ban.

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