Intel fine raises AMD hopes for more action

EU decision will have a positive impact on other cases in the US

AMD hopes that the EU ruling against Intel will add weight to other cases

AMD is hopeful that the recent EU ruling on Intel's anti-competitive behaviour will lead to similar results in the US, and increased competition.

Patrick Moorhead, vice president of advanced marketing at AMD, said in an interview with vnunet.com that the case is encouraging in that it could have a positive impact on similar cases currently being considered in the US.

"We are hopeful that it will make an impact," he said. "We are hoping that Intel's guilty verdicts in the EU, Japan and Korea shine a light on this type of behaviour. Intel acts like it's too big and important to obey laws."

Moorhead explained that there are three cases currently outstanding against Intel in the US, including investigations by the Federal Trade Commission and the state of New York, and a civil case. He hoped that the EU ruling would add weight to these cases.

AMD has alleged that Intel blocked original equipment manufacturers from using AMD hardware in computers, even if it was technically superior to Intel's product. Moorhead said that the end result would be more choice for buyers.

Intel, however, is adamant that it has done nothing wrong and that the EU case will fall apart on appeal.

"The basic allegation against Intel is that it used lower prices, in the form of rebates, to prevent customers from buying or supporting AMD, or to punish customers when they did so," said Bruce Sewell, Intel's general counsel.

"Such claims are false. Intel has never required a customer to agree not to buy from AMD in order to obtain a discount, nor raised a customer's prices when it decided to buy from AMD."

Intel's fine was the largest ever by the EU and comes at a time when US anti-trust officials have vowed to change the Bush doctrine of non-interference in markets. No anti-trust cases have been prosecuted in the past eight years in the US.

Assistant attorney general Christine Varney gave a series of speeches on Monday in which she announced that the government would be aggressively targeting monopolies and anti-competitive practices.