EU enters AMD antitrust case on Intel's side

THE LONG-RUNNING European antitrust case initiated by AMD against Intel has taken a strange twist, with the commissioners in Brussels entering an application in a US court on the chip giant's side.

But the application was made on Intel's behalf as a point of principle, because a decision by a US court described the European Commission as a tribunal, which might hinder its investigations in future cross border cases.

Intel had argued in an appeal that AMD should not be able to access earlier antitrust records in a case between the chip giant and Intergraph.

But its appeal was turned down because a lower circuit court had used a section of US law which ruled that the European Commission was a tribunal. That could hinder the EC in future cases.

The decision to file the application doesn't mean that the EC is favouring either side in the case, which continues.