European Union: Issued ruling in investigation into Intel for abuse of dominant position in processor market

On 22 September 2023, the European Commission (EC) ruled again in the investigation into Intel for abusing its dominant position in the processor market. Between 2002 and 2007, Intel allegedly abused its position by providing "conditional rebates" to computer manufacturers and imposing "naked restrictions". The "conditional rebates" refer to hidden rebates that were given by intel to manufacturers who bought all or almost all of their x86 processors from Intel, and the "naked restrictions" hindered manufacturers from the sale of devices containing products of Intel's competitors against payments. This behaviour was already sanctioned by a EC ruling in 2009, against which Intel appealed. In 2014, the EU General Court dismissed Intel's appeal, while, 2017, the EU Court of Justice granted Intel's appeal, and the General Court ruled again in 2022, annulling the sanctioning of "conditional rebates". Therefore, the EC now only fined Intel regarding the "naked restrictions", imposing a fine of EUR 376.36 million - a reduction from the original fine of EUR 1.06 billion.