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Close to thirty million people in the United Kingdom who purchased an Apple Inc. and/or Samsung Electronics smartphone between the year 2015 and 2024 might be eligible to around £17 each in the event that a buyer watchdog prevails in its lawsuit against the US tech giant Qualcomm Inc..

Trial Commences This Week

The consumer group is escalating the tech giant to the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London this week.

The legal proceedings involving the watchdog and the chipmaker is expected to last around 35 days.

The group is claiming the tech firm of unfair competition.

The group asserts that the company compelled Apple and Samsung Electronics to pay high fees and patent charges for necessary handset components, which then raised the cost of those smartphones for consumers.

The Details the Trial Will Determine

The case starting on Monday will examine whether Qualcomm possessed control and, should that be the case, whether it misused a leading role.

Should the advocacy organization is successful, there will be a subsequent step aiming to obtain £480 million from Qualcomm, to be allocated to an projected 29 million UK smartphone users involved.

The organization is pursuing restitution for all affected Apple & Samsung handsets acquired between 1 October 2015 and early January 2024.

The watchdog says this would almost certainly amount at around 17 pounds per individual.

Previous Allegations and Qualcomm's Position

The company has in the past stated the claim has "no basis".

A parallel case against the tech giant is currently underway in Canada, and the company has also in the past been sanctioned by the European Union for anti-competitive breaches.

The Federal Trade Commission in the United States took legal action against the firm for restrictive tactics in the way it authorized use of its patents in the year 2017, but had its claim dismissed in 2020.

Impact of the Case

The CEO of the organization remarked: "This legal action is a major milestone. It illustrates how the influence of the public - backed by us - can be used to make the largest corporations to be accountable should they misuse their dominant position."

The firm is one of the largest global manufacturers of handset semiconductors and has faced claims about unfair practices in the past.

• Affected devices include Apple & Samsung models acquired between 2015 and 2024.
• The total payout demanded is 480 million pounds.
• Individual compensation is projected to be approximately 17 pounds.
• The trial is being held at the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London.