Qualcomm's Mollenkopf will need to deal with China issues

Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) announced last month that COO Steve Mollenkopf will succeed Paul Jacobs as Qualcomm's new CEO next March, and between now and then--and perhaps for a long period thereafter--he will need to shore up the company's business in China, the world's largest smartphone market. As Chinese carriers follow China Mobile in deploying LTE, Qualcomm and Mollenkopf's mission will be to get handset makers and carriers to sign on to using Qualcomm's LTE modems rather than with local companies or competitors. Meanwhile, the company is contending with a price-fixing investigation in China, and last month a top Chinese antitrust official said there is "substantial evidence against" Qualcomm in the probe. Analysts have said the investigation is likely a pre-emptive move to allow China's operators to gain leverage in royalty negotiations with Qualcomm ahead of the wide rollout LTE service. Qualcomm views the shift to LTE in China as an opportunity for its chipset business as well as for its patent licensing and royalties efforts. Article