Is it possible the whole push to 5G is to get out from under royalties? The first published 5G spec was not Qualcomm. There is definitely a technical improvement, but I’ll bet there is more to it.
"To promote the Progress of Useful Arts" my ass.
Excerpt: "2.275% of the selling price of branded single-mode 5G handsets; and a royalty rate of 3.25% ... (for) multi-mode (3G/4G/5G) handsets"
I believe specs aren't generally published by companies, but they use a lot of the IP from companies. That IP is supposed to be licensed under FRAND terms to anyone (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory).
5% on a $500 phone is $25
5% on a $50 phone is $2.50
Switching to a fixed $25 fee makes it 50% on a $50 phone.
On phones of yore, even “smartphones” in the early-mid 2000s, the radio was still arguably one of the most important / expensive components. This may just be bias on my part on how terrible I thought Nokia and Blackberry smartphones (typically around $500 RRP) were though. My loathing of J2ME knows no bounds.