1

Case No. 17-CV-00220-LHK 

ORDER REGARDING QUALCOMM’S UNSEALING OF APPLE PAYMENT AMOUNT

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

United States District Court

Northern District of California

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

SAN JOSE DIVISION

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION,

Plaintiff,

v.

QUALCOMM INCORPORATED,

Defendant.

Case No. 17-CV-00220-LHK 

ORDER REGARDING QUALCOMM’S 

UNSEALING OF APPLE PAYMENT 

AMOUNT

On Friday, January 11, 2019, Qualcomm Inc.’s (“Qualcomm”) CEO Steve Mollenkopf

testified that non-party Apple, in exchange for an exclusivity agreement, “wanted [Qualcomm] to 

pay [Apple], I think it was a billion dollars.” Transcript at 819:4-5. Mollenkopf also testified that 

as part of the resulting Transition Agreement that Qualcomm and Apple reached in 2011,

“[Qualcomm] would pay [Apple] a billion dollars in incentive.” Id. at 822:23-24. At the trial, 

Qualcomm’s trial counsel stated that the $1 billion figure was “known and not sealed.” Id. at 

823:3-4. 

However, on Thursday, January 10, 2019, Qualcomm represented that the $1 billion

amount of Qualcomm’s incentive payment to Apple was a “confidential pricing term” and sought 

to seal references to the $1 billion figure. See ECF No. 1216; ECF No. 1216-1, ¶ 20. The Court 

Case 5:17-cv-00220-LHK Document 1281 Filed 01/13/19 Page 1 of 2
2

Case No. 17-CV-00220-LHK 

ORDER REGARDING QUALCOMM’S UNSEALING OF APPLE PAYMENT AMOUNT

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

United States District Court

Northern District of California

granted Qualcomm’s motion to seal the $1 billion payment amount based on Qualcomm’s 

representation that the $1 billion figure was a “confidential pricing term.” ECF No. 1235. 

After having successfully sealed the $1 billion payment amount, Qualcomm then asserted 

in a filing Friday night that the $1 billion incentive in the 2011 Transition Agreement is not 

confidential because it is public information. ECF No. 1269 at 1. Qualcomm cited the FTC’s 

public complaint in this action, which alleges only that “Qualcomm’s 2011 and 2013 agreements 

with Apple provided for billions of dollars in conditional rebates from Qualcomm to Apple.” ECF 

No. 1 ¶ 124. Contrary to Qualcomm’s assertion, the FTC’s complaint does not reveal that 

Qualcomm paid Apple $1 billion via the 2011 Transition Agreement. Qualcomm does not cite 

any instance where the specific amount paid by Qualcomm to Apple via the 2011 Transition 

Agreement has been publicly revealed. 

In its motion to seal, Qualcomm asserted that compelling reasons merited sealing both the 

$1 billion total payment amount and the amounts Qualcomm paid to Apple via specific funds in 

order to reach that $1 billion amount. ECF No. 1216. Now that Qualcomm has chosen to publicly 

reveal the $1 billion payment amount, compelling reasons no longer exist to seal the amounts 

Qualcomm paid to Apple via specific funds in order to reach the $1 billion total payment amount. 

Therefore, Qualcomm shall unseal any references to the $1 billion payment amount and the 

amounts Qualcomm paid to Apple via specific funds in order to reach that $1 billion amount. By 

January 14, 2019, at 8:00 a.m., Qualcomm shall file revised public redacted versions of any 

documents containing those figures consistent with this order. 

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: January 13, 2019

______________________________________

LUCY H. KOH

United States District Judge

Case 5:17-cv-00220-LHK Document 1281 Filed 01/13/19 Page 2 of 2