07-12-2005, 07:28 AM
|
#11 (permalink)
|
|
Registered User
|
Here's a little bit of an update.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9584_22-5...=zdfd.newsfeed
Quote:
update European regulators raided the offices of Intel and a number of PC-related companies early Tuesday as part of an antitrust investigation into the chip giant.
As part of the dawn raid, European Commission officials and national competition authorities from member states descended on several Intel offices, as well as a number of IT companies that manufacture or sell computers, a Commission representative said.
"These inspections are carried out within the framework of an ongoing investigation," the representative said.
An Intel representative said the chipmaker is cooperating fully with investigators.
"Our normal business practice is to cooperate, and we are doing (that) so far in this case," Intel representative Chuck Mulloy told CNET News.com. "We firmly believe that our business practices are fair and lawful."
The morning raid comes less than four months after Intel reached an agreement with Japan's Fair Trade Commission, which required the chip giant to halt the practice of requiring PC makers to limit the use of competitors' chips in exchange for discounts. Intel agreed to abide by the recommendations, though the company stated that it disagreed with the agency's findings and conclusions.
Last year, Japanese officials also conducted a raid on Intel offices and made their findings available to antitrust agencies in other countries. Following Japan's raid, the European Union said it would revisit its antitrust probe into Intel and sent out 64 letters of inquiry to computer makers and retailers.
Also last year, Commission officials said they would investigate the practice of some member states' procurement policies, which restricted computer purchases to only those that used Intel chips.
"Normally, these companies are pissed when their offices are raided, but there is nothing they can do about it," said one source familiar with antitrust issues. "They see what investigators have come up with and what is being accused...before they contact" authorities with an explanation.
In most cases, investigators search through hard-copy documents and computer files, the source noted.
CNET News.com's Michael Singer contributed to this report
|
|
|
|