Qualcomm and Visa / Mastercard Class Action Settlement Opportunities

QUALCOMM ANTITRUST LITIGATION –

The class action alleges that Qualcomm abused its market power in the modern chip market to inflate the amount paid by device makers to license their technology in violation of antitrust laws and that these costs were subsequently passed down to those who purchased smartphones and tablets.

The case follows an FTC investigation and ruling that Qualcomm’s actions violated United States antitrust laws as well as fines levied on the company by fair trade commissions in China and South Korea for more than $975,000,000 and $800,000,000 respectively.

Judge Lucy Koh has certified a nationwide class consisting of all persons and entities in the United States who purchased, paid, and/or provided reimbursement for UMT, CDMA, and/or premium LTE cellular devices from January 17, 2013, through the present. For layman’s purposes, the class includes almost anyone who has purchased a smartphone or tablet since 2013 and includes approximately 250,000,000 devices in total, including iPhones and iPads. The class does not include either federal or state entities.

Qualcomm is currently appealing both the verdict in the FTC case as well as Judge Koh’s class certification ruling. If both are upheld, the plaintiffs will be in an exceptionally strong position, which we believe will likely result in a very large settlement.

If your company purchases smartphones and/or tablets for its employees, or reimburses its employees for the cost of a smartphone or tablet, then it may be eligible for a portion of the settlement fund if and when a settlement is reached.

PAYMENT CARD INTERCHANGE FEE AND MERCHANT DISCOUNT ANTITRUST LITIGATION –

On September 18, 2018 an agreement was reached on behalf of all merchants who accepted VISA and/or MasterCard branded credit or debit cards between January 1, 2004 through January 25, 2019. The settlement fund will be between $5.54 – $6.24 billion depending on the number of class members who exclude themselves from the settlement. On January 24, 2019, the court preliminarily approved the new settlement and in the coming months known class members are expected to be mailed notices about their legal rights, including their right to exclude themselves from participating in this settlement. Information about the settlement will also be published in a variety of media outlets.

The tentative deadline for members to exclude themselves is July 23, 2019 with a fairness hearing tentatively scheduled for November 7, 2019. While claim forms are not available yet and potential claimants do not need to sign up with a third-party service in order to participate in any monetary relief, the difficulty may be understanding what information will be provided by the defendants, how that applies to your organization, as well as what additional information can be provided to the court administrator to ensure a complete claim. No-cost assistance will be available from the court administrator and class counsel during the claim filing period. If the Court grants the settlement final approval and any appeals are resolved, the Court will approve a claim process and establish a claim deadline. Updates about the settlement can be found on the official court authorized settlement website at: https://www.paymentcardsettlement.com

Class Action Capital specializes in the research, education, data collection, analysis and claim filing of complex class action settlements. Our value is understanding the entire class action landscape and bringing to your attention those settlements which are the most financially beneficial.

We can assist your company in recovering your pro-rata share of the settlement funds by handling all the heavy lifting. Many companies that we speak with are eligible for these refunds but do not wish to pursue the claims filing internally due to limitations on their time and resources. Additionally, many firms’ data retention policies limit the relevant documentation they can readily gather.

The only thing Class Action Capital needs to get started is for your company to complete our Claim Authorization Form below. Once completed we will get to work analyzing your claim to prepare and file for the impending deadlines in a timely manner.

TO SIGN UP FOR CLASS ACTION CAPITAL’S CLAIM MANAGEMENT PLEASE COMPLETE THE BELOW AGREEMENT