Chipmaker giant Intel has filed an appeal to Europe’s Court of First Instance, seeking to overturn the €1.06 billion fine levied against it last May for abusing its dominant position in the EU market. The European Commission found that Intel engaged in illegal rebates and other practices in order to squeeze rival chipmaker AMD out of the market; Intel claims the EC ignored some evidence in the case and misinterpreted other evidence, leading to a faulty ruling. The company has maintained it did not violate European antitrust law.
The EC said Intel paid computer manufacturers to cancel or delay products featuring competing processors, meaning those products either never got to market or got to market too late to compete effectively with Intel’s offerings. The EC claimed that some of the payments came in the form of rebates to manufacturers and retailers for preferentially offering Intel-based gear.
The EU ruling came after an eight-year investigation. Intel’s marketing practices are also being investigated by the New York State Attorney General’s office as well as the Federal Trade Commission. The EC’s decision was generally seen as a win for consumers, putting pressure on regulatory bodies in other countries to examine Intel’s marketing practices, as well as taking a strong stance against multinational companies shutting competition out of the European market.
Intel claims the EC ignored or refused to examine evidence that contradicted assertions in the EC’s decision.
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