Intel received a payment of € 515.55 million ($ 536 million) from the European Union as a percentage of payment of payment after a successful company’s appeal against a fine of 1 billion euros, imposed more than 10 years ago for anti -competitive practice. For Intel, which is now worried about the best times, this victory has come in handy.
Image source: Intel
The story began in 2009, when the European Commission fined Intel, the largest manufacturer of microcircuits, by € 1.06 billion for abuse of the dominant position in the processor market. The company appealed this decision, and the court eventually abolished the fine in 2022. After that, Intel demanded compensation in the form of interest for the use of funds – € 593 million. As it became known to The Register portal, the new head of the EU Antimonopoly Office Teresa Ribera, who had recently replaced Margrete Vestager, was approved.
Despite the attempts of the European Commission to appeal the decision, the European court finally confirmed the case of Intel in October last year. After that, the commission immediately fulfilled the court decision, making payment in November last year, as Ribera reported in a written statement to a member of the European parliament.
The case concerned the practice of Intel of the early 2000s when the company provided financial incentives for computers manufacturers for the preference of its processors before competitors, such as AMD. Such actions were regarded by regulators as unfair competition and then this fine became one of the largest, imposed EU on the corporation.
Despite this victory, Intel’s current financial situation remains alarming. Over the last quarter of 2024, the company suffered a loss of $ 126 million, and revenue decreased by 7 % compared to the previous year. The total losses over the past 12 months reached $ 18.8 billion.