A Delaware jury ruled Tuesday that Arm breached its architecture license agreement with Qualcomm and committed intentional and negligent interference with Qualcomm's business dealings with Meta, but awarded only $2 in symbolic damages. The verdict follows last week's five-day trial, the second lawsuit between the two companies in two years.
The jury found Arm failed to fulfill obligations by not providing software patches and supporting tools for its chip designs. Arm won on the other five breach claims. On business interference, the jury found Arm intentionally and negligently interfered with Qualcomm's Meta relationship, awarding $1 each on the two claims. Qualcomm says it was close to a Meta deal in 2024 when Arm allegedly leaked news to Bloomberg that Qualcomm violated its license, delaying the agreement.
After the verdict, Arm shares fell 1% and Qualcomm rose 1%, easing from a roughly 2.4% gain before the ruling. Both sides acknowledged parts of the verdict, but the core dispute is far from over.
Qualcomm said the jury found Arm breached a long-standing architecture license and deliberately disrupted its business. Arm said Qualcomm sought to strip it of billions in revenue under the license, and the $2 award proves Arm acted in good faith with reasonable claims.
The symbolic amount is small, but the breach finding opens room for later rulings. It means presiding judge Maryellen Noreika could rule that Qualcomm can stop paying Arm royalties for five years, worth potentially billions. Arm argues the five-year royalty penalty clause is unenforceable. The business interference finding can also support Qualcomm's claim that Arm failed to negotiate in good faith on next-gen technology—an issue the judge must also decide.
Since SoftBank took control of Arm in 2016, Arm's focus has shifted from licensing chipmaking technology to selling its own chips, worsening tensions. The breach and interference findings give Qualcomm a factual basis to seek royalty-free treatment in later stages, while Arm will likely appeal adverse rulings.
ICgoodFind Summary: The $2 award is symbolic—the real leverage is the jury's breach finding against Arm. If the judge backs Qualcomm's five-year royalty waiver, the financial impact escalates from symbolic damages to a multi-billion-dollar licensing fight.
