Qualcomm chief: Why is China probing us? We haven't a clue

Qualcomm's chief still has no idea why the chipmaker is being investigated by antitrust regulators in China, he told Reuters today.

In November, the chipmaker said that China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) had started a probe of the firm, but added that it wasn't aware of any violations.

"We really don't know yet," Paul Jacobs said at the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, although he said that it wasn't unusual for antitrust authorities in lots of countries to keep their cards close to their chests.

In December, state media reported an NDRC senior official as saying that the commission had "substantial evidence" against Qualcomm.

Some commentators have suggested that the probes may be part of efforts by China's government find leverage to use in royalty negotiations or to help local suppliers along in their bid to compete with Qualcomm. Chinese mobile chipmakers Spreadtrum Communications and RDA Microelectronics, which both have technology that competes with Qualcomm's, were bought up by organisations affiliated with the government in the last few months. ®