FTC Files Suit Against Intel for Anticompetitive Practices
12/16/2009
Washington – After investigating
allegations of anti-competitive conduct for more than a year, the
Federal Trade Commission has filed suit against Intel, accusing the
company of using its dominant position in the chip making market to
block competitors’ products.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association has been a
long-standing advocate for competition in the technology marketplace
for more than 35 years. The following statement can be attributed to
CCIA President & CEO Ed Black:
“This suit is a big development and shows this administration and this
FTC takes antitrust enforcement seriously. It’s good news for American
consumers and companies trying to innovate and compete in the chip
market.”
“The FTC lawsuit helps to safeguard consumers and the industry at
large. Although we commend Intel for settling its private litigation,
it is the FTC who is charged with protecting consumers beyond the scope
of the private litigation filed by AMD. We hope that Intel continues
on its recent conciliatory path and enters into a larger settlement
with the FTC so the industry can more swiftly put this chapter in its
history behind it.
“The FTC argues in its complaint that Intel has been engaging in this
conduct for a decade, which caused considerable damage to competition.
But the good news is this lawsuit comes at a crucial moment for
competition among graphics processing units. This extra scrutiny could
help preserve competition there, which would mean better, cheaper
products for customers and more innovation.”
“Intel is a company with good people and innovative products. It has
been hard to understand why it would engage in these practices, rather
than compete on the merits of its products.
“The FTC indicates in its complaint that at least two companies, AMD
and Nvidia, were out-competing some of Intel’s offerings. It appears
Intel was falling behind and tried to trip up their competitors. If so,
this is a good example of why competition laws and regulators willing
to use them are critical to consumers and the nation’s economy, which
needs innovation.
“Innovation and products that make technological leaps forward are
crucial to our nation’s economic recovery. The FTC’s actions against
Intel’s alleged bullying behavior shows it understands the dangers of
overlooking evidence that a company is using its position to discourage
competing products from reaching the marketplace.
“The charges leveled in the FTC complaint expand on those already
launched by antitrust authorities in Europe, Japan and South Korea.
Those countries found Intel guilty of breaking their antitrust laws by
offering illegal rebate schemes to block rival chip makers' products. “
For more on this antitrust issue, click here
About CCIA:
CCIA is an international, nonprofit association of computer and
communications industry firms, representing a broad cross section of
the industry. CCIA is dedicated to preserving full, fair and open
competition throughout our industry. Our members employ more than
600,000 workers and generate annual revenues in excess of $200 billion.
Contact:
Heather Greenfield
202-783-0070 ext 113
Ed Black
202-783-0070 ext 110
