Qualcomm, which has been the subject of antitrust probes in China, is also now under investigation in the United States and Europe for possible regulatory violations.
Qualcomm, which is the world's top supplier of chips for mobile phones, said that the new investigations are primarily concerned with the company's patent licensing business.
Qualcomm has been under fire in China for alleged monopoly practices. The company is suspected of abusing its position in the mobile phone chip market and overcharging for components, which could lead to fines amounting to a total of over $1 billion.
China has shown that it is serious with its antitrust investigations with the removal of an economist that allegedly helped Qualcomm prepare its defense report from the 21-member panel that serves as advisers to the Chinese Cabinet.
The new antitrust investigations would be just as serious. The Federal Trade Commission of the United States is undertaking a preliminary investigation on the company for possible breaches of licensing terms, while the European Commission of the European Union is launching a probe on Qualcomm's practices on rebates and similar financial incentives for the sale of its chips.
"We are fully cooperating with these agencies and believe our practices comply with the laws of these countries," said Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf.
Nevertheless, Qualcomm officials have stated that the outcome of such probes is unpredictable, and that the company could be facing significant fines and penalties that could further dampen its financial standing.
Qualcomm reported unexpectedly weak results for the fourth quarter of the company's fiscal year, with revenues of $6.69 billion. While this is a 3 percent increase compared to the same period last year, analysts were expecting for the company to post revenues of $7.02 billion.
Net income for the fourth quarter was $1.89 billion, which is a 26 percent increase compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year.
Qualcomm said that the FTC informed the company of the probe in the middle of September, in a filing stating that the focus of the agency will include the potential breach of FRAND commitments. The acronym refers to the licensing of patents in a fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory way.
The probe on Qualcomm by the European Commission was reported earlier this year in August as a possibility, stemming from a complaint that was made four years ago by Icera, a subsidiary of Nvidia and a mobile phone chip maker.
Icera alleged that Qualcomm was utilizing anti-competitive strategies in a complaint filed in June 2010. A source revealed that Icera's complaints were on patent-related incentives and exclusionary pricing for chipsets that Qualcomm was using to make it less attractive for potential customers to work with Icera.
