Patent Royalty Fees Driving Up Smartphone Costs

A recent report authored by two Apple lawyers and an Intel executive titled "The Smartphone Royalty Stack: Surveying Royalty Demands for the Components within Modern Smartphones" details the impact on the cost that consumers pay for their phones. The report found that for a $400 smartphone the buyer can expect to pay about $120, or 30% of the total cost, in patent royalties and in some cases the patent-related costs are greater than the cost of the hardware itself.