Mener Intel bryter monopollover

[snorreh]

Nå har også konkurransetilsynet i Sør-Korea kastet seg inn i denne saken:

 

Seoul probing Intel marketing practices

South Korean antitrust authorities are investigating the marketing and rebate practices of Intel, the world's largest chip maker said on Monday, in the latest of a series of probes outside the United States into the company's market influence.

 

South Korea's investigation, disclosed in an Intel regulatory filing, follows similar probes by Japan and the European Union, and highlights the growing enmity between two archrivals that have sparred over similar issues in the past two decades.

 

Intel controls 80 percent of the market for microprocessors, the central chip of personal computers. Rival Advanced Micro Devices sued Intel in June, alleging that it used threats and kickbacks to maintain its market dominance. Intel denies the charges.

 

In April, Intel, based in Santa Clara, Calif., agreed to comply with an order by Tokyo to eliminate discounts that the Japanese said stifled competition. Last month, European officials stepped up an antitrust probe, searching the offices of Intel and its customers and distributors.

 

In a quarterly filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Intel said it was complying with a written request from South Korea's Fair Trade Commission requesting documents from Intel's Korean subsidiary related to marketing and rebate programs offered to Korean PC makers.

 

The Korean FTC enforces competition laws and decides antitrust cases.

Blir konkurransetilsynene i Kina, Taiwan, Singapor og Malaysia de neste som får øynene opp for denne svært viktige saken?

Endret 9. august 2005 av snorreh

[Ni kon]

Ja Snorreh du har rett.

 

Intel går nok konkurs og må legge ned all virksomhet. Ikke nok med det, men alle som har Intel produkter i sine maskiner må umiddelbart ødelegge disse.

 

Faktisk tror jeg at denne viktige saken vil forandre datamarkedet slik vi kjenner det. Og jeg tror faktisk Apple og Mac skal bryte ut av kontrakten med Intel bare på grunn av dette. Ikke nok med det men DELL skal vissnok ha sagt opp avtalen med Intel også.

 

Verden går til hundene, og jeg tror vi bare har AMD igjen.

 

La dette være dagen da du Snorreh, den store spåmann og Intel-hater fikk rett i at Intel er onskapen selv. Mennesker over land og strand foren eder. Verdens undergang er nær, vi må samle oss mot onskapen (Intel) og la oss omfanne det eneste sanne (AMD)

[Boralis]

Ja endelig blir det fred på jord , haleluja :!: :!:

Endret 9. august 2005 av Snekker`n

[bjokys]

Ja Snorreh du har rett.

 

Intel går nok konkurs og må legge ned all virksomhet. Ikke nok med det, men alle som har Intel produkter i sine maskiner må umiddelbart ødelegge disse.

 

Faktisk tror jeg at denne viktige saken vil forandre datamarkedet slik vi kjenner det. Og jeg tror faktisk Apple og Mac skal bryte ut av kontrakten med Intel bare på grunn av dette. Ikke nok med det men DELL skal vissnok ha sagt opp avtalen med Intel også.

 

Verden går til hundene, og jeg tror vi bare har AMD igjen.

 

La dette være dagen da du Snorreh, den store spåmann og Intel-hater fikk rett i at Intel er onskapen selv. Mennesker over land og strand foren eder. Verdens undergang er nær, vi må samle oss mot onskapen (Intel) og la oss omfanne det eneste sanne (AMD)

Ta deg en sykkeltur og kjøl deg ned

[snorreh]

Flere detaljer om dette her:

 

Intel Probed for Anti-Trust Law Breach

South Korea has launched a probe into a possible violation of antitrust regulations by Intel Corp. of the United States.

 

The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said Tuesday that it has requested the Seoul office of the Santa Clara, California-headquartered microchip giant, to submit documents regarding its rebate and marketing programs last June.

 

The world’s biggest chipmaker has either already been charged or is being scrutinized for similar possible charges in the U.S., Europe and Japan, following antitrust lawsuits filed by Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Intel’s smaller cross-town rival.

 

Intel’s U.S. headquarters on Monday revealed Korea’s probe into its business practices in its quarterly filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

``The FTC made an official inquiry into possible marketing irregularities by Intel and requested that the company turn in all documents required for the investigation by the end of this month,’’ said vice chairman Kang Dae-hyung in a press meeting held at the Kwachon government complex.

 

``We will decide on the level of the punishment if we discover any specific violation of the antitrust law by the U.S. chipmaker,’’ Kang said.

 

The FTC vice chairman said the antitrust regulator began its investigation into Intel’s business practices before the filing of the antitrust lawsuit by Sunnyvale, California-based AMD.

 

AMD filed antitrust lawsuits in the U.S., Europe and Japan earlier this year, alleging that Intel’s sales and marketing practices cajoled or forced major PC makers, distributors and retailers into limiting their purchases of AMD’s microchip processors, offering marketing dollars, rebates and other incentives in return.

 

AMD is seeking unspecified monetary damages and injunctions in the U.S., Europe and Japan.

 

``We decided to investigate Intel’s business practices in Korea after coming across news reports that Intel abused its dominant market position in Japan and strong-armed Japanese computer manufacturers, violating anti-trust rules,’’ Kang said.

 

``We haven’t found any irregularity in Intel’s business deals with Korean PC makers yet. We requested the submission of related documents, including contracts with Intel’s U.S. headquarters, to look into the matter in detail,’’ Kang said.

 

He added that the FTC is cooperating in the investigation with its Japanese counterpart through an informal channel.

 

``We are cooperating with the FTC’s investigation. But it is difficult to comment about the investigation at the moment,’’ said Kwak Eun-ju, public relations manager of Intel Korea.

 

``AMD hasn’t yet decided whether to bring a lawsuit against Intel in Korea or not. We are currently weighing the chance of winning the antitrust lawsuit against Intel because we only want to start a winning game,’’ said Sophie Ryu, PR manager of AMD Korea.

 

``We will see which way the wind blows and make the decision,’’ she added.

 

Last March, the Japanese Fair Trade Commission concluded that Intel offered marketing dollars and other incentives to five Japanese PC makers, including Sony and NEC, in exchange for their agreement to limit or stop doing business with AMD.

 

Intel's marketing programs are also being looked at by the European Commission, which raided the offices of Intel and PC vendors in Europe last month.

[jon67]

``AMD hasn’t yet decided whether to bring a lawsuit against Intel in Korea or not. We are currently weighing the chance of winning the antitrust lawsuit against Intel because we only want to start a winning game,’’ said Sophie Ryu, PR manager of AMD Korea.

 

``We will see which way the wind blows and make the decision,’’ she added.

Både feighet og opportunisme på en gang. Imponerende.

[snorreh]

En tidligere rådgiver i det amerikanske konkurransetilsynet kommenterer denne saken her:

 

An AMD Chip on His Shoulder

 

"This is the best-written complaint I have read in an incredibly long time," says David Balto, a former policy adviser for the Federal Trade Commission who is not involved in this case. "I think even if they are in front of a conservative court, if they can prove their allegations, the court will be sympathetic."

 

Anbefaler forøvrig alle å lese hele denne artikkelen som er en god oppsummering av saken så langt.

Endret 3. oktober 2005 av snorreh

[snorreh]

Nå har en domstol i Tokyo beordret Intel til å fremvise bevismateriale relatert til etterforskningen mot dem foretatt av det japanske konkurransetilsynet:

 

Japanese court forces Intel to hand over evidence

A Tokyo district court told Intel to hand over evidence related to an investigation by the Japanese Fair Trade Commission (FTC) for breaching antimonopoly legislation.

 

The evidence was picked up by Japanese snoops after they raided Intel's office and the offices of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) last year.

 

AMD Japan said it will use the FTC evidence in a court case it has initiated against Intel Japan.

 

The FTC produced material which AMD claims shows one of the OEMs was forced to buy all of its CPUs from Chipzilla. AMD claims that Intel "conditioned rebates" on the exclusive use of Intel microprocessors. This, said AMD, is related to the Intel Inside programme.

 

The FTC has told Intel Japan it can't provide rebates to OEMs if they include a clause that exclude competitors' microprocessors.

Flere detaljer om denne saken her:

 

Tokyo District Court Denies Intel K.K. Argument To Keep Evidence Obtained By JFTC Of Illegal Business Practices From The Public Record

Tokyo District Court today required the disclosure of evidence collected by the Fair Trade Commission of Japan (JFTC) during its investigation of Intel K.K. (“Intel”) for violating the country’s Antimonopoly Act. The evidence, discovered in raids of Intel K.K. offices as well as major Japanese OEM manufacturers in April, 2004, formed the basis of the JFTC’s Recommendation against Intel. Legal counsel for AMD Japan intend to use the JFTC’s evidence as part of its law suit against Intel in Japan, filed June 30th, 2005.(AMD Japan v. Intel K.K.).

 

The ruling was issued at the conclusion of a hearing in which counsel for both AMD Japan and Intel addressed the production of documents collected by the JFTC during its year-long investigation into Intel for violating Japan’s Antimonopoly Act.

 

“Today’s court ruling sends the message that the truth about Intel’s illegal monopoly abuse will soon see the light of day,” said Thomas M. McCoy, AMD executive vice president, legal affairs and chief administrative officer. “We thank the court for its sound decision, and we believe that it sends a clear message worldwide that Intel cannot hope to hide the truth about its anti-competitive business practices any longer; not from the law or from consumers everywhere who deserve to know the facts. We believe the JFTC’s evidence will show what people inside our industry already know well – that Intel abuses its monopoly position to threaten and intimidate OEMs not to do business with AMD.”

 

McCoy continued, “What’s at stake is the future of computing in a world economy that grows more dependent on microprocessors daily. Consumers across the globe are being harmed by Intel's abusive monopoly- preservation tactics through higher prices, stifled innovation and reduced choice.”

Endret 16. desember 2005 av snorreh

[snorreh]

AMDs Henri Richard kommenterer bl.a. søksmålet i dette intervjuet med The Register:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/05/10/amd_henri_interview/

El Reg: Isn't it hard to keep banging the anti-trust drum given your success with the 64-bit chips and market share gains?

 

HR: I get this question a lot. It's a bit like asking, "You've been a criminal all your life but for the last three years you have behaved properly. Does that make you less of a criminal?"

 

El Reg: Yeah, but these lawsuits take a lot of time, energy, and money. Why bother at this point? Why not stay focused?

 

HR: The evidence is the evidence. The fact that we have been successful could be because we did the lawsuit. It could be because we started to raise the awareness in the consciousness of the customers, the government, and to a certain degree Intel employees that things needed to change.

 

We still see monopolistic behavior taking place every day. In some cases it might be more subdued, but that is not to say it has completely changed.

 

I am proud that Hector had the courage to say, "Enough". Somebody needed to do it.

Ja, nok er nok!

[snorreh]

Nå tar også Dells aksjonærer affære og beskylder Intel for deltakelse i svindel:

http://users1.wsj.com/lmda/do/checkLogin?m...main_whats_news

Dell Inc., reeling from business problems that led to Wednesday's departure of Chief Executive Kevin Rollins, was accused in an investor lawsuit of improper accounting in its longtime partnership with chip maker Intel Corp.

 

The suit, which seeks class-action status on behalf of Dell shareholders, alleges that Dell's profits were inflated by hundreds of millions of dollars in quarterly rebates from Intel that Dell failed to properly account for and disclose. At times, the suit asserts, Dell was receiving as much as $1 billion a year in what the plaintiffs characterize as "secret and likely illegal" kickbacks by Intel to ensure that Dell use no other chip supplier.

[...]

Dell also said it has been subpoenaed by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York over its financial reporting. In November, Dell was forced to delay its fiscal third-quarter earnings due to the complexity surrounding the SEC investigation.

 

The company's stock, which traded in late 2005 at more than $40 a share, has fallen significantly since then. The shares fell 42 cents yesterday at 4 p.m. at $23.80 in 4 p.m. Nasdaq Stock Market trading.

 

Several suits seeking class-action status were filed in Austin after Dell disclosed the federal investigations of its accounting practices. The latest complaint adds allegations that focus on Dell's long-standing practice of buying microprocessor chips only from Intel, which ended last year when Dell finally emulated competitors and began also using AMD chips. Some of the charges echo those contained in AMD's 2005 antitrust suit, which also attacked rebates and subsidies paid by Intel to computer makers.

 

The complaint alleges that Dell received "e-Cap payments" -- standing for "exception to corporate average pricing" -- from Intel for not doing business with AMD. The approximately $1 billion a year that Dell received in such payments was spread out unevenly over the four quarters, money that would be applied to reduce the portion of Dell's expenses known as cost of goods sold, the complaint states.

 

Dell became very dependent upon these payments, which were made by Intel at or near the end of the Dell's quarters and had a "direct, material impact" on the computer maker's reported operating profits or profit margins, the complaint alleges.

 

Information about the rebates was limited to about 15 senior people at Dell, the complaint states. Intel insisted that Dell maintain secrecy about the program because it feared that if these payments became known, antitrust officials in various countries would likely take legal action against Intel, the complaint alleges.

 

Despite Dell's reputation as a stalwart Intel customer, the complaint asserts that Dell after 1999 each year secretly designed computers based on AMD chips. But those computers would be put on hold at varying stages of their developments, as Intel and Dell negotiated privately over terms of their relationship, the suit states.

Mer om dette her:

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenew...&archived=False

 

Hvis dette også viser seg å stemme så henger isåfall Intel i en syltynn tråd

Endret 5. februar 2007 av snorreh

[snorreh]

Nå viser det seg at også Lenovo har en hemmelig avtale med Intel ifølge Forbes:

 

Lenovo's Phantom Profits

Lenovo, the world's third-largest maker of personal computers, is getting paid a pretty penny to use Intel chips

[...]

Intel [...] has signed a large, $100 million annual incentive deal with Lenovo. The Chinese company rose to international prominence when it bought the personal computer business of IBM for $1.75 billion in 2005.

[...]

Lenovo received a $22 million incentive payment from Intel in its third quarter, which ended Dec. 31. The company has not disclosed its deal with Intel, but it did not dispute the figures, which were supplied to Forbes.com by a source with knowledge of the transaction. Intel refused to comment on the matter.

 

The payment depends on a range of incentive categories, including the total number of chips that Lenovo buys and the reimbursement of advertising money Lenovo spends on promoting its Intel-powered computers. The annual target for chips used is 17 million, equal to Lenovo's annual computer output.

[...]

The $22 million payment is significant for Lenovo, especially if, as some analysts have suggested, it is treated as earnings. In its latest quarter, Lenovo earned 31.1 billion Hong Kong dollars, or just under $4 billion. The $22 million payment is equivalent to 0.55% of that, and Lenovo's gross margin improved to 13.5% in the latest period from 13.0% in the second quarter.

 

In other words, all of the improvement in gross margin, a key metric for makers of high-tech hardware, could have been attributable to the Intel incentive payments.

 

That could reverse the perception among analysts of Lenovo's success in turning around its sagging fortunes, since a 0.5% improvement in gross margin would be impressive in the competitive computer manufacturing industry.

 

"Because of the gross margin improvement, people have different views of the company. The incentive payment would mean it is not due to actually operational improvement," said one analyst, who asked not to be identified.

 

Ellen Tseng, a Taipei-based analyst with Morgan Stanley, said computer companies can normally book incentive payments without investors noticing. One reason is that many of these payments are buried in advertising expenses, Tseng said.

Også disse opplysningene ser ut til å stemme bra overens med AMD sine påstander i søksmålet mot Intel.

Endret 18. februar 2007 av snorreh