Technology giant Apple [corporate website] on Wednesday announced two lawsuits against Qualcomm [corporate website] in Beijing’s Intellectual Property Court. The lawsuits [WSJ report], similar to the one filed in a US district court [JURIST report] last week, allege a violation of China’s antimonopoly law as well as unfair and unreasonable licensing practices. Apple is seeking 1 billion yuan (USD $145 million) in damages for the antimonopoly suit. Qualcomm claims the suits in China are an attempt by Apple to get the technology for less money.

The suit in the US seeks $1 billion in damages, with Apple claiming that Qualcomm, despite being only one of many manufacturers involved in the production of Apple’s iPhone, insisted on onerous and allegedly illegal prices for technology. Apple also claimed that Qualcomm took punitive measures against it when Apple cooperated in a South Korean investigation. These lawsuits follow a US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) [official website] suit against Qualcomm claiming the company monopolized a semiconductor device [JURIST report] used in cellphones. According to the FTC, Qualcomm requires cellphone manufacturers to agree to license terms which would require paying higher royalty fees to Qualcomm if the manufacturer uses a competitor’s device and that the company refuses to provide licenses for competitors.