Qualcomm—Faces £480M UK class action lawsuit by 29 million smartphone consumers
Consumer group Which? filed class action lawsuit on behalf of 29 million UK consumers who purchased Apple and Samsung smartphones between October 2015 and January 2024. The lawsuit alleges Qualcomm abused market dominance in chipset and patent-licensing markets, forcing phone manufacturers to pay inflated fees passed to consumers. Five-week trial began October 2025 at London's Competition Appeal Tribunal. Potential average payout of £17 per device if successful. Ruling on liability expected late 2025.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antitrust & Competition | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Consumer Protection | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.214 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (high ×1.5) × confidence (0.57)× agency (compelled ×0.25)
Evidence (1 signal)
Lawyer Monthly reported £480M UK class action trial for 29M consumers
Lawyer Monthly reported that consumer group Which? launched five-week trial at Competition Appeal Tribunal on October 6, 2025, representing 29 million UK smartphone purchasers claiming Qualcomm abused market dominance with inflated patent fees.