Competition

During the 1980s, Intel was among the top ten worldwide semiconductor sales leaders (10th in 1987), dominated by Japanese chip makers. In 1991, Intel achieved the number one ranking and has held it ever since. Other top semiconductor companies include AMD, Samsung, Texas Instruments, Toshiba and STMicroelectronics.

Competitors in PC chipsets include VIA Technologies, SiS, ATI, and Nvidia. Intel's competitors in networking include Freescale, Infineon, Broadcom, Marvell Technology Group and AMCC, and its competitors in flash memory include Spansion, Samsung, Qimonda, Toshiba, STMicroelectronics, and Hynix.

The only major competitor to Intel on the x86 processor market is Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), with which Intel has had full cross-licensing agreements since 1976: each partner can use the other's patented technological innovations without charge after a certain time.[50] However, the cross-licensing agreement is canceled in the event of an AMD bankruptcy or takeover.[51] Some smaller competitors such as VIA and Transmeta produce low-power processors for small factor computers and portable equipment.

Lawsuits

In September 2005, Intel filed its response to an AMD lawsuit,[52] disputing AMD's claims, and stating that its business practices are fair and lawful. In its rebuttal, Intel laid out the skeleton of its legal defense, which included a deconstruction of AMD's offensive strategy and levied the charge that AMD's long struggling market position is largely a result of bad business decisions and management incompetence, including underinvestment in essential manufacturing capacity and over-reliance on contracting out chip foundries.[53]

Legal experts predict the lawsuit will most likely drag out for a number of years, since Intel's response indicates they are not likely to try to settle with AMD.[54][55] A court date has been granted in 2010.[56]

In October 2006, a Transmeta lawsuit was filed against Intel for patent infringement covering computer architecture and power efficiency technologies.[57] In October 2007, the Transmeta-Intel lawsuit was settled, with Intel agreeing to pay an initial US$150 million and US$20 million per year for the next 5 years. Both companies agreed to drop lawsuits against each other while Intel was granted a perpetual non-exclusive license to use current and future patented Transmeta technologies in its chips for 10 years.[58]

Anti-competitive allegations by regulatory bodies
Japan

In 2005, the company violated Japanese Antimonopoly Act, local Fair Trade Commission concluded. The commission ordered Intel to eliminate discounts that discriminated its competitor Advanced Micro Devices. To avoid a trial, Intel agreed to comply with the order.[59][60][61][62]

European Union

In July 2007, the European Commission formally accused Intel of anti-competitive practices, mostly against its main competitor AMD.[63] The allegations, going back to 2003, include giving preferential prices to computermakers getting most or all chips from Intel, paying computer makers to delay or cancel the launch of products using AMD chips and providing chips at below cost to governments and educational institutions.[64] Intel responded that the allegations were unfounded and instead qualified its market behavior as consumer-friendly.[65] General counsel Bruce Sewell also responded that the Commission had misunderstood some factual assumptions concerning price and manufacturing costs.[66]

In February 2008, a spokesman for the company announced that Intel's office in Munich had been raided by European Union competition regulators investigating its business practices. Intel reported that it was cooperating with investigators.[67] If found guilty of stifling competition, Intel could be fined up to 10% of its annual revenue.[65] Rival AMD also subsequently launched a website focusing on these allegations.[68][69] In June 2008 the EU has filed new competition charges against Intel.[70]

South Korea

In September 2007, South Korean regulators formally accused Intel of breaking antitrust law. The inquiry began in February 2006 when officials raided Intel's South Korean offices. The company risked being fined up to 3% of its annual sales if found guilty.[71] In June 2008, the South Korea's Fair Trade Commission ordered Intel to pay a fine of $25.5 million for taking advantage of its dominant position to offer incentives to major Korean PC manufacturers on the condition of not buying products from rival AMD.[72]

United States

New York started an investigation of Intel in January 2008 on whether the company violated antitrust laws in pricing and sales of its microprocessors.[73] In June 2008 Federal Trade Commission opened a formal antitrust investigation for this case.[74]

Environmental record

In 2003 there were 1.4 tons of carbon tetrachloride measured from one of Intel's many acid scrubbers. However, Intel reported zero release of carbon tetrachloride for all of 2003.[75] Intel's facility in Rio Rancho, New Mexico overlooks a nearby village, and the hilly contours of its location create a setting for chemical gases heavier than air to move along arroyos and irrigation ditches in that village. This has reportedly led to adverse affects in both animals and humans. Examinations of deceased dogs from the area have returned reports of high levels of toluene, hexane, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers in their lungs.[76]

In the June-July time frame of 2006, Intel reported that there were VOC releases of more than 1580 pounds.[77]