South Korea latest to hit Qualcomm with antitrust probe
US chipmaker facing antitrust investigations in Europe and US after settling Chinese case
South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission is investigating Qualcomm, a source said on Thursday, adding to antitrust woes for the US chipmaker following a record fine it agreed to pay in China.
South Korea's Maeil Business newspaper, without citing direct sources, reported that the commission would look into whether Qualcomm was abusing its dominant market position.
As part of its investigation, the commission planned to send inquiries to domestic smartphone makers such as Samsung Electronics as well as Qualcomm competitors like Intel, the newspaper said.
Qualcomm, the Fair Trade Commission and Samsung Electronics declined to comment. Intel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Qualcomm is also dealing with antitrust probes in Europe and the United States. In their investigation of Qualcomm, Chinese antitrust officials met with their South Korean counterparts.
In 2009, South Korea's Fair Trade Commission fined Qualcomm more than US$200 million for abusing its dominant market position.