Late last year, Japanese wireless carrier NTT Docomo announced that it was planning to compete with Qualcomm by producing LTE-capable semiconductors in a joint venture with Samsung, Fujitsu, Fujitsu Semiconductor, NEC, and Panasonic Mobile Communications. The companies said it planned to have the details for the partnership ironed out by the end of March, but we're now learning that the partnership is being dissolved because the companies couldn't reach an agreement. Docomo spokeswoman Naoko Minobe said that "the various stakeholders each had their own ideas, and an agreement could not be reached by the March deadline."

The dissolution of this partnership comes despite the fact that NTT Docomo had already put up some $5.4 millon to set up a new subsidy, Communication Platform Planning, in advance of the launch. It's not clear if the carrier will try and re-enter talks with some or all of its potential partners; at this point, it seems the carrier will simply have to deal with Qualcomm continuing to dominate the market.