Court ruling could see sales of older iPhones halted in Germany

A court in Germany has sided with chipmaker Qualcomm in a patent dispute with Apple that could see sales of older iPhone models halted.

The Munich regional court ruled that Apple and its subsidiaries had breached a European patent held by San Diego-based Qualcomm.

The court said in a statement that this effectively means Apple is “banned from offering or distributing unlicensed” devices including the iPhone 7, iPhone 8 and iPhone X.

The “plus” variants of the iPhones 7 and 8 are also affected.

The ruling can be challenged but judges said that if Qualcomm wants the verdict enforced in the meantime, it needs to deposit a security of about 1.34 billion euros (£1.21 billion).

The disputed patent regulates the amount of energy provided to the phones’ telecom chips.