An anonymous source claimed earlier this week that Samsung had raised prices on the mobile processors it sells to Apple. But now a different anonymous source, this time from Samsung, is saying that didn’t happen.
According to The Street, “a Samsung Electronics official denied the reports to The Hankyoreh” on Wednesday and “noted that prices are set at the beginning of the year and aren’t changed easily.”
That contradicts the claim that Apple had no choice but to accept the 20 percent price hike because there was no other supplier who could churn out enough iPhone and iPad processors.
But the denial doesn’t necessarily clear things up. The previous story said the price hike had come “recently.” If prices are set at the beginning of the year, perhaps what’s come out in the press is negotiating for 2013 prices? The translation of the Samsung official’s denial wasn’t clear cut.
Whether they raised their prices or not, the status of the relationship between Samsung and Apple is still very complicated. Apple and Samsung’s businesses are deeply intertwined, and since the epic patent trial win by Apple this summer, things have gotten more tense and negotiations between the two partner competitors continue to play out in public.
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