[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] SEOUL, November 19 — The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has launched an investigation into British semiconductor design company Arm over allegations of unfair trade practices.
According to industry sources, the KFTC recently conducted an on-site inspection at Arm Holdings’ Seoul office. The probe was initiated following a complaint filed by Qualcomm, which has also reported the matter to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the European Commission.
Qualcomm alleges that Arm has restricted access to essential chip-design technologies, undermining fair competition. Arm traditionally licensed its CPU architecture to semiconductor companies, but Qualcomm claims Arm began unfairly limiting access as it expanded into selling its own custom chip designs.
The dispute escalated after Qualcomm acquired Nuvia, an Arm-licensee, in 2021. Arm argued that Nuvia’s licenses could not be transferred without approval and filed a lawsuit—one the U.S. court later ruled in Qualcomm’s favor in late 2023.
If Arm’s conduct is found to constitute unjust refusal to deal or conditional trading, it could face sanctions for violating Korea’s Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
