Intel is once again crying foul after the European Commission released a mountain of evidence Monday, which makes it clear how the company broke antitrust laws. Since then, Intel’s CEO has complained to journalists the EU released selective documents and that the company is not allowed to defend itself.
Intel is currently under investigation by the Federal Trade Commission on similar charges of unfairly using rebate schemes to block manufacturers and retailers from using and selling competitors’ products. Intel is also a defendant in a major civil suit in Delaware, which could go to trial in the next six months after years of legal maneuvering and paperwork. If Intel wants to defend itself by making the full record of its actions public, it continues to have these opportunities to do so.
The company can cease its stalling and join the companies and journalists who have been petitioning the Delaware court for more than a year to release documents in the pending antitrust case.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association, the New York Times, The Register, Dow Jones, the Washington Post and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press asked a federal court in Delaware last August (2008) to unseal records in the AMD Intel lawsuit.
The following statement can be attributed to CCIA President & CEO Ed Black:
“Intel’s weak defense in response to the mounting evidence of its abusive, anticompetitive practices is ludicrous. First it tried to say the EU was acting without cause and unfairly picking on an American company, even though most of the companies harmed by Intel’s illegal actions are also American. Now, when the EU released mountains of evidence this week to back their decision, Intel has tried to claim it is powerless to respond in kind. Nothing stops Intel from telling the truth and revealing is own records. But full disclosure and the truth have been bottled up by Intel at every turn.
“If Intel really wanted to reveal documents to back up their explanation of these business deals that have been found to be illegal by officials in the EU, Japan and Korea, they can. There is nothing to prevent Intel from talking about its own history or the deals it made with other companies like Dell and HP to block AMD and its computer chips from the market. The bottom line is these deals hurt consumers. These practices clearly seem to be illegal and indefensible. Maybe a public relations agent or lawyer has advised against releasing documents. If Intel really has nothing to hide, we would invite them to join CCIA and journalists in asking the federal court in Delaware to release all the documents in the case.”
View more information on the documents released by the EU this week.