Intel’s regulatory troubles continued today with word from the Federal Trade Commission that it’s suing the chip giant for an alleged decade-long history of anticompetitive practices. Datamation looks at what the FTC is charging, what Intel says in its defense, and how the new allegations go beyond Intel’s longstanding rivalry with AMD.
U.S. regulatory authorities today filed a lawsuit against Intel, alleging a 10-year history of monopolistic behavior that saw the world’s largest chipmaker use its dominant market power to crowd out cheaper, potentially superior alternatives.
The Federal Trade Commission complaint details a pattern of Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) using a system of threats and rewards to strike exclusive agreements with leading U.S. PC makers like Dell, HP and IBM to include its hardware in their systems.
The agency is seeking an order that would bar Intel from practices deemed anticompetitive and monopolistic, but is not asking for any monetary damages.
“There would be no possible monetary sanctions with respect to the FTC action,” Richard Feinstein, director of the FTC’s competition bureau, told reporters this morning. “We are really more focused on addressing the conduct.”
Specifically, the FTC will ask a judge for an order that would curb threats, bundled pricing and other paths to strike exclusive deals or manipulate pricing.
