FTC says delaying decision on Intel

Wed Jul 21, 2010 10:02pm BST

* Deadline now just after midnight on Aug. 6

* Deadline had been July 22

WASHINGTON, July 21 (Reuters) - Federal antitrust enforcers will take two more weeks to consider a proposed settlement with chip giant Intel Corp, which had been accused of illegally using its market dominance to stifle competition.

In a brief statement, the Federal Trade Commission said that the new order temporarily withdrawing its case against Intel would now expire at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 6. The deadline had been July 22.

Intel Corp, which just reported stellar quarterly earnings, has been under attack from rival chipmakers for years for its aggressive pricing and sales tactics. It makes 80 percent of the world's CPUs, the brains of personal computers.

The FTC and Intel lawyers announced on June 21 they had reached a preliminary settlement agreement, but did not divulge details.

"We can confirm that discussions are continuing but given the confidential nature we won't comment further," Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy said in an email.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Gary Hill)

((Diane.Bartz@ThomsonReuters.com; +1 202 898 8313))

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