Samsung has bumped up the price of the A-series chips it supplies to Apple, which relies on them for production of its iPad and iPhone devices.
The prices of Samsungs application processor chips were increased by 20 per cent, according to a report by Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo.
With the two firms having fought a high-profile legal battle in the US this year, which Samsung lost, and with smaller lawsuits still taking place around the rest of the world, this looks like a purposely disruptive move by Samsung against its rival.
Unable to find a replacement supplier, Apple has had to accept the price hike, meaning it will pay the higher prices until 2014, when its contract with Samsung runs out. 
Apple reportedly bought more than 130m of the chips from Samsung in 2011, a number thats expected to surpass 200m by the end of the year.
