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The FTC is in the early stages of gathering information about whether Broadcom, which has become a major supplier of WiFi and Bluetooth chips to companies like Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), illegally forced exclusivity agreements on its customers, the report added.
Broadcom is blaming the supply-chain crisis to justify its demands from customers, the report said, citing people with knowledge of the situation and a document seen by The Information.
The FTC has declined to comment, while Broadcom did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
In July last year, FTC said it had filed a proposed order to settle antitrust charges against the company. The consent order required Broadcom to stop demanding that its customers buy components mostly or only from Broadcom.
Broadcom reached a similar agreement with the European Commission in October 2020.
