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Close to 30 million consumers in the Britain who purchased an Apple or Samsung Electronics handset between the year 2015 and 2024 may be entitled to around 17 pounds per person in the event that a customer advocacy organization prevails in its case against the US corporation Qualcomm.

Trial Commences This Week

The campaign is taking the firm to the CAT in the UK capital starting Monday.

The trial involving the consumer group and Qualcomm is projected to last over a month.

The organization is alleging the semiconductor firm of unfair competition.

The allegation is that the company pressured Apple and Samsung Electronics to pay excessive costs and royalty payments for essential phone parts, which then raised the price of those smartphones for buyers.

The Details the Trial Will Examine

The legal proceedings commencing this week will focus on whether Qualcomm held control and, if proven, whether it misused a leading role.

If the watchdog is successful, there will be a follow-up phase requesting £480 million from Qualcomm, to be distributed among an projected twenty-nine million British smartphone users affected.

The organization is pursuing restitution for all eligible Apple Inc. and Samsung mobile phones bought between the start of October 2015 and 9 January 2024.

The group estimates this would almost certainly calculate at approximately seventeen pounds per person.

Past Legal Challenges and The Firm's Response

The chipmaker has in the past said the legal action has "little merit".

A parallel case against Qualcomm is ongoing in Canada, and the company has also in the past been sanctioned by the European Union for anti-competition practices.

The Federal Trade Commission in the US took legal action against the company for anti-competitive behavior in the way it authorized use of its patents during the year 2017, but had its legal action dismissed in 2020.

Significance of the Case

The head of the watchdog commented: "This case is a significant event. It demonstrates how the influence of buyers - supported by our organization - can be used to hold the largest corporations to be accountable should they misuse their leading role."

The firm is one of the world's biggest producers of smartphone chips and has encountered claims about anti-competitive behaviour before.

• Affected devices include Apple Inc. and Samsung models purchased between the end of 2015 and January 2024.
• The total payout being sought is 480 million pounds.
• Per-person payment is estimated to be around seventeen pounds.
• The case is being held at the CAT in London.