FTC will likely bring antitrust case against Intel

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is preparing an antitrust lawsuit againstIntel Corporation, makers of the world's most popular microprocessors.According to a report in USA Today on Tuesday that cites sources close tothe investigation, the FTC will file a suit based on Intel's practice ofwithholding key technologies and information from companies it is fightingwith. Intel has come under fire recently from Digital, which it settledwith, and Intergraph, makers of high-end PC workstations. When Intergraph sued Intel for patent violations, Intel withheld access to pre-releasematerials regarding upcoming microprocessors.

When asked about the suit, Intergraph CEO Jim Meadlock said it made sense.

"I wouldn't be surprised," he said. "I think the judge's ruling where he said he thought we would prevail in the contention that they did have a monopoly position--that's what's of concern to the FTC."

The FTC is also investigating whether Intel was forcing PC manufacturers tobuy special Intel parts--the motherboard and other chips--that were neededto work with Intel's latest Pentium II microprocessors. Before the PentiumII, PC makers were free to use parts from a variety of vendors