New York attorney general settles case against Intel

The case, initiated in 2009, charged Intel with forcing PC makers into exclusive deals

The New York attorney general settled an antitrust case it brought against Intel in 2009, the chip maker announced on Thursday.

While Intel said it doesn't admit to any violations of the law or that allegations in the suit are true, it did agree to pay US$6.5 million to cover some of the litigation costs incurred by the New York attorney general and some non-state public entities involved in the suit.

The suit, brought in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleged that Intel convinced computer makers to sign exclusive agreements to buy its chips and threatened to punish those that bought products from Intel competitors. The complaint detailed billions of dollars that Intel allegedly gave to computer makers in exchange for the exclusive deals.

The agreement with the New York attorney general follows a December 2011 ruling that reduced the scope of the suit, Intel said.

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The New York attorney general settled an antitrust case it brought against Intel in 2009, the chip maker announced on Thursday.

While Intel said it doesn't admit to any violations of the law or that allegations in the suit are true, it did agree to pay US$6.5 million to cover some of the litigation costs incurred by the New York attorney general and some non-state public entities involved in the suit.

The suit, brought in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleged that Intel convinced computer makers to sign exclusive agreements to buy its chips and threatened to punish those that bought products from Intel competitors. The complaint detailed billions of dollars that Intel allegedly gave to computer makers in exchange for the exclusive deals.

The agreement with the New York attorney general follows a December 2011 ruling that reduced the scope of the suit, Intel said.

As part of the settlement, the attorney general agreed not to sue Intel on related charges.

The settlement concludes a flurry of actions filed against Intel in 2009. That year, Intel paid a $1.45 billion fine to the European Union for antitrust violations. It also faced an investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission on similar antitrust charges. Intel settled those charges the following year.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.