Apple Warns Component Suppliers

Interesting goings on around the fruit company.


Nikkei.com

TAIPEI -- Apple has asked its supply chain to prepare around 20% fewer components for iPhones debuting in the latter half of 2018, taking a cautious approach toward smartphone shipments compared with last year's orders, industry sources say.

"Apple is quite conservative in terms of placing new orders for upcoming iPhones this year," one of the four sources, who is in the supply chain, told the Nikkei Asian Review. "For the three new models specifically, the total planned capacity could be up to 20% fewer than last year's orders."

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"The scheduled time frame for components for the OLED models to go into iPhone assemblers like Foxconn and Pegatron for final assembly falls in July, while the schedule for components for the LCD model would be in August," a supply chain source said. "Two OLED models are likely to be ready roughly one month earlier than the cost-effective LCD model, according to the current plan."

Foxconn

Qualcomm sues Apple, Foxconn, Pegatron, Wistron

This will be interesting to watch.... 

Some of my friends are puzzled when I say I don't really want Apple to be the first company to incorporate PicoP on a large scale.... I wouldn't ever want to be dependent on doing business with Apple.


Techspot

Qualcomm is escalating its patent dispute with Apple by suing the contractors that build iPhones for the Cupertino-based company. Filed Wednesday in a federal district court in San Diego, the lawsuit accuses Compal Electronics, Foxconn, Pegatron and Wistron of breaching patent-licensing agreements with Qualcomm by halting royalty payments on Qualcomm technology used in iPhones and iPads.

Apple originally sued Qualcomm for $1 billion, saying that the mobile chip maker had been dramatically overcharging it for the use of basic patents. Qualcomm hit back with a countersuit, claiming among other things, that Apple deliberately hindering the performance of Qualcomm chips in certain iPhone 7 models to make Intel chips look better and that it encouraged regulatory attacks on Qualcomm's business.

Apple doesn't have a patent license directly with Qualcomm, relying instead on licenses held by the contract manufacturers, whom Apple reimburses. However, in an aggressive move, last month the iPhone maker reportedly instructed its manufacturing partners to stop paying royalties to Qualcomm, as it wasn’t going to reimburse them anymore until a court determines how much it actually owes. Apple agreed to indemnify them against any damages they may incur by failing to pay royalties to Qualcomm.