Qualcomm Raises Their Arm in Objection Against NVIDIA’s Acquisition

Objectionable Content

Today we discovered who would be first to object to NVIDIA’s $40 billion acquisition of ARM as the proposed purchase enters the second phase.  Microsoft and Google have expressed concerns about the purchase, but it was Qualcomm who first reached out officially.  It has formally expressed concerns to the Federal Trade Commission, the European Commission, UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, and China’s State Administration for Market Regulation.

They did not share their specific objections publicly as of yet, so there are no details on the substance of the objection.  It isn’t surprising that Qualcomm is the first to object as they depend on ARM licenses for all of their products.  NVIDIA have stated that they have absolutely no intentions of changing any existing licensing terms several times but this hasn’t fully reassured Qualcomm.

Expect to see more objections raised as more companies which depend on ARM register objections with the various regulatory bodies around the planet which have authority.  It will be very interesting to see the details of the objections as proceedings continue.