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Here's Why BlackBerry (BBRY) Stock Skyrocketed Today

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Shares of BlackBerry opened more than 18% higher on Wednesday morning after the company announced that it was awarded nearly $815 million in an arbitration decision related to its dispute over payments made to Qualcomm (QCOM - Free Report) .

According to a statement released by BlackBerry, today’s decision is a preliminary one, and a final award including interest and attorneys’ fees will be issued after a hearing on May 30. This interim arbitration decision awarded BlackBerry exactly $814,868,350.00.

Nearly a year ago, BlackBerry and Qualcomm agreed to arbitrate a dispute over whether Qualcomm’s cap on certain royalties applied to payments that BlackBerry made under a license agreement between the two companies.

“BlackBerry and Qualcomm have a longstanding relationship and continue to be valued technology partners," said BlackBerry CEO John Chen. "We are pleased the arbitration panel ruled in our favor and look forward to collaborating with Qualcomm in security for ASICs and solutions for the automotive industry."

The news comes just a day after the latest twist in Qualcomm’s ongoing legal dispute with Apple (AAPL - Free Report) . Back in January, Apple filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm, alleging that the chipmaker was overcharging for chips and refusing to pay some $1 billion in promised rebates. On Tuesday, Qualcomm announced that it was countersuing Apple based on its accusation that the iPhone maker purposefully held back its most advanced chip features (also read: Qualcomm Countersues Apple Over Holding Back Most Advanced Chips).

These recent headaches are just a few on the growing list of legal disputes involving Qualcomm over the past few years. In 2015, a Chinese regulatory authority fined the company nearly $975 million for abusing China’s anti-competitive terms. In 2016, Qualcomm was fined $886 million in South Korea for restrictive licensing practices. Moreover, since 2011, Qualcomm has been under investigation for competition violations in the European Union region.

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