China's Antitrust Regulator Says Qualcomm Case to Be Settled Soon

The Chinese government has that it will soon settle its antitrust investigation of US mobile chipmaker Qualcomm Inc.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's anti-monopoly regulator that launched its probe of the San Diego-based company 13 months ago, said the case would be settled according to the law, according to an online statement.

The notice cited Xu Kunlin, director general of NDRC's anti-monopoly bureau.

The NDRC also said it had completed its seventh round of discussions with Qualcomm CEO Derek Aberle and his team earlier this month.

The regulator said in February that the US chipmaker was suspected of overcharging and abusing its market position in wireless communication standards.

An imminent decision in the case is expected to force the company to pay fines potentially exceeding $1 billion and require concessions that would hurt its highly profitable business of charging licensing fees on phone chipsets that use its patents.