The fine of 1.06 billion euros imposed in May 2009 on Intel was a record for a manufacturer. The decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is a serious setback for the European policeman of competition.
With our correspondent in Brussels, Pierre Benazet
It was the x86 microprocessor that was at the center of the dispute between Intel and the European Commission’s competition services. A microprocessor which, at the time, held 70% of the market share in Europe; Intel was accused of having imposed it on OEMs and distributors. Lenovo, Dell or MediaMarkt, among others.
The Court of Justice harshly judges the work of the Commission. It concludes that even if Intel was partially guilty of a dominant position, the Commission has not demonstrated whether the rebates granted by the manufacturer actually had the effect of foreclosing competitors.
A serious setback
The CJEU’s decision to cancel the May 2009 fine imposed on Intel is yet another snub for the European Commission. An even more serious setback than the cancellation due to a procedural defect of the 13 billion euros that Google had to reimburse to the Irish tax authorities.
The European Commission could therefore choose not to appeal the cancellation imposed on Wednesday rather than having to start almost from scratch an investigation carried out 15 years ago.
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