Abuse of dominant position31/07/09 / cata_european-union-news
Decision of the European Commission in the case of INTEL (COMP/37.990)
The European Commission has imposed a penalty in the amount of €1.06 billion on the computer microprocessor manufacturer Intel for the abuse of its dominant position (see Article 82 of the EC Treaty) on 13 May 2009.
The Commission ruled that Intel abused its dominant position on the market from October 2002 until December 2007 by being involved in two types of illegal conduct.
First, Intel granted concealed discounts and even made direct payments to computer manufacturers who undertook to purchase microprocessors from Intel on an exclusive basis (as an example, the Commission cited Media Saturn Holding, one of the leaders in the sale of electronic devices, which Intel directly paid to not sell computers with microprocessors other than Intel’s). The Commission stated that these payments and discounts prevented consumers from freely choosing alternative products other than those offered by the company with a dominant position on the market.
Second, Intel was found to have violated its dominant position by directly or indirectly paying computer manufacturers to suspend or delay market launches of products that would contain processors other than Intel’s. The Commission stated that Intel’s violation constituted a severe breach of free competition and innovation in the computer microprocessor industry.