Intel receives €515.55 million from the EU following fine reversal

Intel received default interest from the EU for 2009 fine reversal

Intel has secured a €515.55 million payment from the EU following a long-fought legal battle against the European Commission. This payment covers the interest on Intel’s original €1.06 billion fine from 2009, which was mostly scrapped in 2022. Intel initially challenged this fine in 2014.

The EU’s original fine was levied against Intel for anti-competitive practices between 2002 and 2007. The Commission found that Intel had used rebates to discourage manufacturers from using chips from competitors. This discouraged the sale of AMD processors to companies like HP, Acer, Lenovo, and others. In 2022, the General Court of the European Union found flaws in the EU’s economic analysis and overturned most of the fine. This reduced Intel’s fine from $1.06 billion to $376 million.

The reversal of Intel’s fine was due to the European Commission’s inability to prove the negative impacts of Intel’s anti-competitive behaviour sufficiently. Note that this reversal of Intel’s fine came after AMD emerged to once again become a competitor of Intel. Had that not been the case, one has to wonder if the fine would have been reduced.

This cash injection comes at a great time for Intel. The company is facing financial hardship, and half a billion Euros is certain to help Intel balance its books.

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