Intel Allowed More Time For FTC Settlement Negotiations

The ongoing legal battle between the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and CPU giant Intel Corp. may finally come to a conclusion if the reports circulating on the Internet are anything to go by. The FTC accused the company, back in December, of engaging in illegal means of stifling competition on the CPU and GPU markets. Now, it appears that Intel may be planning on striking a deal with the commission in order to avoid a fine and any further financial issues that would inevitably arise if the case drags on.

According to Reuters, the Santa Clara, California-based chip maker actually already reached a preliminary settlement, though it is still under discussion and will continue to be for a short while yet. This was possible because the commission gave Intel a month to engange in negotiations.

Now, even though said month is nearing an end, the CPU maker was given an extension in the hopes that it will finally reach a suitable compromise. The agreement is supposed to spare Intel from receiving another fine, but under the condition that the changes it made after its November settlement with AMD be extended to graphics chips.

"Discussions are ongoing, and we have nothing more to add at this point," said Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy, even as the company continued to deny any wrongdoing, according to Reuters.

The other side of the deal demands that Intel regulate its use of volume discounts for both graphics and central processing units, at least that's what the unnamed source implied. It should, of course, be noted that, since talks are still not finalized, there is still the possibility of certain terms of the deal changing. Either way, an exact conclusion is expected to be reached by Friday, July 23, though that date can be pushed back. Predictably, the FTC itself did not comment on the story.