Intel will pay a fine of 376 million euros to the EU

The European Union (EU) fined the American technology company Intel with 376 million 360 thousand euros for violating competition rules in the chip market.

The EU Commission announced that it decided to fine US-based chipmaker Intel again for having abused its market dominance.

In 2009, the Commission fined the company €1.06 billion for having shown anti-competitive behavior in the market by applying discounts to computer manufacturers.

INTEL REVOKED THE DECISION IN COURT

The General Court of the EU, which is within the structure of the European Court of Justice, the highest court in the EU, decided to annul in 2022 the Commission decision that imposed a fine of 1,060 million euros on Intel 13 years ago .

The court ruled that the Commission’s review of the fine imposed on Intel was incomplete and that the necessary legal standards on whether the discounts applied by the company had anticompetitive effects were not met.

VIOLATION OF ANTITRUST RULES

In its statement on the matter, the EU Commission stated that Intel violated EU antitrust rules and engaged in practices aimed at excluding its competitors from the relevant market.

The statement states that the fine was taken due to payments that Intel made to computer manufacturers Hewlett Packard, Acer and Lenovo between 2002 and 2006 to delay the launch of central processors from rival companies and limit their sales channels.

With the new fine, the EU Commission has introduced changes in the scope of the competition file in question. The EU Commission has the authority to inspect whether an anti-competitive situation exists in sectors of companies operating in the EU.

If the EU Commission detects during the investigation a situation that violates competition or antitrust laws, it ends it and imposes heavy fines on companies. (AA)