Anti-monopoly expert denies Financial Times report

A Chinese anti-monopoly expert involved in Qualcomm's case denied the validity of the Financial Times' report that he "only worked for Qualcomm," the Beijing News reported on Jan. 29.

Zhang Xinzhu, a member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said his exact words were, "I only provided consultancy service for Qualcomm. I never sat on the fence like the others did."

He also told the Financial Times that "I have no lack of bottom line and moral conscience."

According to the Financial Times, Zhang said he "had no conflict of interest, as I only worked for Qualcomm." The report also said that Zhang admitted to charging US$800 an hour, making him China's most expensive legal consultant in the field of anti-trust law.

The quotes in the report were mistakenly translated, Zhang told the Beijing News.

Zhang used to be a member of the Anti-Monopoly Committee Expert Advisory Group of the State Council, China's cabinet. He was dismissed in August 2014 for receiving a large sum of money from Qualcomm and defending it when the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planning agency, launched an anti-monopoly investigation into the company.

Qualcomm was investigated in November 2013 on suspicion of overcharging and abusing its market dominance to manipulate wireless communication standards. An insider said that the year-long investigation will soon be concluded and that the company – the world's biggest cell phone chip maker – is likely to see a record fine of US$1 billion.

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