Story perspectives

Apple’s $15B AirPods Profit Fuels Licensing Fees Amid Jackless Trend

7/13/2026

Summary

Story summary

Apple released AirPods, pricing them at least $100 above the old wired buds and generating a $15 billion annual business.
Apple’s licensing scheme forces Lightning or USB-C headphone makers to pay a fee for each unit sold.
Samsung removed its headphone jack in 2019, prompting every major Android manufacturer to follow within two years.
Critics say Bluetooth’s limited bandwidth forces audio compression, degrading high-resolution sound compared with the 3.5 mm jack.

History

Historical Context

Bluetooth began as Ericsson’s short-link project in 1994, and the Bluetooth SIG was founded in May 1998 by Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Nokia and Toshiba. The first commercial Bluetooth product—a hands-free headset—appeared in 1999, followed by IBM’s ThinkPad A30 and Ericsson’s R520m phones in 2001, and today the SIG reports roughly 4.7 billion Bluetooth chips shipped each year.

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Story summary

Apple released AirPods, pricing them at least $100 above the old wired buds and generating a $15 billion annual business.
Apple’s licensing scheme forces Lightning or USB-C headphone makers to pay a fee for each unit sold.
Samsung removed its headphone jack in 2019, prompting every major Android manufacturer to follow within two years.
Critics say Bluetooth’s limited bandwidth forces audio compression, degrading high-resolution sound compared with the 3.5 mm jack.

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