ARM and Qualcomm clash over licensing ahead of quarterly results

what happened

TradingView reports that ARM Holdings PLC Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:ARM) is in a court dispute with Qualcomm involving allegedly withheld patches, leaks and royalty issues. The case also touches on ARM’s licensing caps, its relationship with a major customer and the company’s move into chipmaking. Qualcomm accounted for about 9% of ARM’s revenue in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026.

Qualcomm alleges that ARM withheld patches and testing tools, while a letter disclosed by Bloomberg damaged discussions with Meta; ARM denies breaching its obligations. The jury was paused after about 4 hours, with the trial set to resume next Tuesday. In a separate bench proceeding, Judge Maryellen Noreika is considering whether to cancel a five-year royalty suspension and whether ARM negotiated in good faith over next-generation technology.

Testimony also covered ARM’s licensing history. A 2013 cap set royalties at $1.88 per chip for processors with five or more CPU cores, and the parties are disputing whether that limit applies to newer, higher-core products. ARM held preliminary, independently unverified discussions about a possible acquisition of networking startup Eliyan. The company also argued that Qualcomm’s damages claim over a leaked termination letter is barred. ARM will publish fiscal Q2 2027 results after the market closes on Nov. 4, 2026, followed by an audio webcast at 2:00 PM PT / 5:00 PM ET.

why it matters

The dispute matters because Qualcomm is a significant ARM customer and the case could affect how royalty limits and licensing commitments are interpreted. TradingView also noted that ARM shares fell about 1.6% after Microsoft and Nvidia introduced products using Arm technology; traders are focused on device shipments and per-chip royalties, which were not disclosed.

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