AMD 'breaks free', creates site dedicated to Intel's antitrust ruling

We knew AMD would be celebrating its victory over Intel and its record $1.45 billion fine doled out by EU over violation of antitrust rules, but we figured that just meant a very fancy cake and maybe a trip to the local zoo. Nay, we were mistaken, as the chip maker has gone all out in creating an entire website dedicated to its victory. "AMD Break Free" is pretty amazing in its thoroughness, and you'll find all kinds of court documents, press releases, explanations of antitrust laws, and even a news feed to follow further developments. Of course, Intel's appeal is a sure sign this case will be drag on for a very long time, possibly even become overturned, and none of this apparent gloating is gonna help one bit in getting the company back into the top ten rankings for chip manufacturers.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

[matt @ May 18th 2009 9:39PM]

how mature

[Anthony @ May 18th 2009 9:43PM]

That's kind of what I was thinking, but meh.

Intel > AMD

[Matt @ May 18th 2009 9:50PM]

Only in size...

If Intel had won this case a virtual monopoly on all computers would ensue (obviously not exactly a monopoly, because of the laws against it, but Intel would have its pawns as competitors)

[CleverEndeavor @ May 18th 2009 9:59PM]

ah, intel chips are better than AMD. the core i7 has no match from AMD (with no overclocking).

[RoboDan @ May 18th 2009 10:15PM]

How about : "AMD - we can't really brag about anything"

Not quite as catchy, but it is unfortunately true

Disclosure: I am an AMD fan with desktop CPUs, but am disappointed with this move.

[basroil @ May 18th 2009 10:05PM]

No match with or without overclocking (if you overclock, you might as well overclock the i7 as well, especially since 1+gh boost in i7 is easy to do even with stock fan).

That fanboy stuff aside, AMD sure is mature about this.... I've seen kindergartners with better manners.

[Cash @ May 18th 2009 10:17PM]

I was just thinking the same thing. The only thing worse then a sore loser is a sore winner, and lately, AMD has been both. These kinds of antics from companies pretty much ensure I will never give them a dime.

[Dummy00001 @ May 19th 2009 5:23AM]

> ah, intel chips are better than AMD. the core i7 has no match from AMD (with no overclocking).

Very true (even with OC). What makes the Intel's behavior is even less tolerable.

I'm still in dark why would Intel do anything like that. It's true that AMD did them with AMD64 (and saved everybody from Itanic), but even that was for Intel like a wee blip.

[Jon Doe. @ May 19th 2009 9:47AM]

Try again. Only the hardcore fanbois still think AMD can compete with Intel on anything other then price. All AMD can do now a days is sling mud. Sorry but mud doesn't go into the ZIF socket on my laptop. Screw you AMD. Screw you and your sub-par mobile processors.

[vftptega @ May 19th 2009 7:24PM]

really i7 is better. i buy i7 for my htpc, desktop at work, desktop at home. i7 is good for everything. i recommend i7 to everyone in my family because i7 is better......... also i7 is good for websurfing.

[TRAFFICBLOWS @ May 18th 2009 9:39PM]

good for amd

[vdex34 @ May 18th 2009 9:49PM]

+1

[Game_playa @ May 18th 2009 10:25PM]

Yay!

[CH3BURASHKA @ May 18th 2009 11:32PM]

Yes, it's good for them, but they went about with their new-found "goodness" the wrong way.

[Marcus @ May 19th 2009 8:23AM]

Right,

Now let's start focusing on creating products that the consumers want, and market those products properly.

[yes @ May 18th 2009 9:41PM]

I Want A Break Free!!!

[Ellianth @ May 18th 2009 9:42PM]

Why not just offer their own bribes? Big babies :P.

[Izzy @ May 19th 2009 11:20AM]

Thank you Dick Cheney :-P

[facedown41 @ May 18th 2009 9:43PM]

AMD will never overtake intel, their always a day late and a dollar short coming up with the latest tech.

[Matt @ May 18th 2009 9:52PM]

Plus Intel has direct control over AMD with the licensing and everything... Intel always finds a way to screw with AMD when they get a good product by messing with their production or when they have AMD winning in an emerging market, Intel pulls out the bribery...

[Richard @ May 18th 2009 10:01PM]

There was a period of about five years when AMD was delivering processors with better overall performance, better performance per dollar, better performance per clock and better performance per watt. At the time I couldn't understand why the big computer makers weren't selling PCs with AMD processors and it turns out it was because Intel bribed them not to.

If it wasn't for Intel's anti-competitive practices AMD would be in a much better situation now with more cash for development, a larger market share and a stronger brand. Consumers also would have gained from the enhanced competition in the form of lower prices and faster processors. Sadly Intel ruined it for everyone by believing they're above the law. I hope AMD get at least a few billion from suing Intel since Intel's practices have cost them at least that.

[basroil @ May 18th 2009 10:14PM]

Richard, you do realize that this lawsuit was started BEFORE the opteron craze? AMD earnings where skyrocketing, intel was losing ground against AMD, and then AMD launched this lawsuit with the help of EU officials. Just because it took the EU 4+ years to reach a verdict and sentence doesn't mean this lawsuit is still proper or valid. First EU flips out on microsoft for installing WMP and IE6 (no reaction against apple with quicktime and safari) even though you need IE6 or another browser to be able to download and install ANY third party browsers, and unless you somehow have acess to a hard copy somewhere you wouldn't be able to get online to do that if IE6 was removed (no comment on WMP, pretty much not important at all since realplayer always sucked and their business plan was made by someone with a fifth grade education). Then EU goes after anyone that holds patents for things that are such a good idea that they would be a natural monopoly (which is completely legal in the US).

[krenshaw @ May 18th 2009 10:27PM]

Richard: Intel sold OEMs a package, processor and graphics which was cheaper for them, AMD had no answer to that, that is why they didn't choose AMDs chips. because of this, AMD went out of their way to buy ATI so they can compete on the same level.

[PCIV @ May 18th 2009 10:36PM]

Such as chips that did better clock for clock? Such as platform wide 64-bit support? I beg to differ on the time, just the money that they're short on.

[Newone @ May 19th 2009 3:46AM]

AMD had a significant performance lead over the intel from about 1999 when athlonn releaced to about 2005. During this time most big pc makers didn't releace a AMD based PCs. Industry journalist were largly wondering why AMD didn't gain ground with them considering they had better, faster, and cheaper processors. This verdict explains it.

From wikipedia: "Intel was found to have paid companies, including Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo and NEC, to exclusively use Intel chips in their products, and therefore harmed other companies including AMD. The European Commission said that Intel had deliberately acted to keep competitors out of the computer chip market and in doing so had made a "serious and sustained violation of the EU's antitrust rules". In addition to the fine, Intel was ordered by the Commission to immediately cease all illegal practices."

So basicly intel was paying computer makers money NOT to use any AMD chips. It would have been completely ok if intel had competed with price, but paying for not to use is a violation.

As for blaming EU, Japan antitrust has rulled against intel on this years ago, and there's a antitrust complaint against intel under consideration in US, which intel will probably lose too.

[Chris @ May 19th 2009 6:12AM]

krenshaw: They were cheaper because Intel gave these companies massive refunds (bribes). Did you learn NOTHING?

[Patriks7 @ May 19th 2009 12:26PM]

"Richard: Intel sold OEMs a package, processor and graphics which was cheaper for them, AMD had no answer to that, that is why they didn't choose AMDs chips."

AMD was willing to give to multiple companies a million chips for free, but all they took was about a 100 thousand due to the bribe from Intel.

[youngstunna @ May 18th 2009 9:45PM]

pretty amazing or amazingly petty

[coolbho3000 @ May 18th 2009 9:45PM]

This is really, really, really old news Engadget. Like really old. "Break Free" has been online for a pretty long while now...

[vdex34 @ May 18th 2009 9:50PM]

this is true, i wonder whats going on inside engadget sometimes, really

[Dummy00001 @ May 19th 2009 5:48AM]

Let me guess. They are people too?? Not some nine-headed hydras so they can't track of the whole internet????

[ProfessorKaos @ May 19th 2009 4:38PM]

really dude, you cant know EVERYTHING as soon as it happens. Its a profession BLOGGING site, not a magazine, sometimes Im sure engadget just doesn't have the resources to catch everything. Chill...

[Dunhill @ May 18th 2009 9:47PM]

that's funny.

[andy_usa @ May 18th 2009 9:51PM]

But that still doesn't change the fact that AMD still suck big time! I don't see there's any chance at all for them to win or even avoiding getting bankrupt for christ's sake!

[dagamer43 @ May 18th 2009 10:04PM]

I'm sorry, are you telling me you want LESS competition?

[rcarm @ May 18th 2009 10:10PM]

He's a fanboy, that's why.

[andy_usa @ May 18th 2009 10:59PM]

rcarm: u're an AMD fanboy? I feel so sorry for you...

[mko @ May 18th 2009 11:08PM]

Bankrupt? Amd sold over 50 million Holywood gpus on Wii

[andy_usa @ May 18th 2009 11:28PM]

mko: making millions with GPUs can't cover their asses with billions of losses in the CPU market. They can't rely solely on the Wii since the crave for it had stopped considerably. Radeon is not doing as great as u think. Nvidia still have the upper hand. Given the economy is that bad, u do the math yourself and u should understand better.

[Mr. 14 @ May 19th 2009 12:24AM]

Just making up numbers doesn't make either of you right, y'know...

[Bryant @ May 19th 2009 3:21AM]

There are such things as intel/AMD fanboys? Seriously?

I mean holy crap, how bad must your life be? It's just a damned processor. I can understand being an Apple or Microsoft fanboy, but being a fanboy specifically of processors from intel/AMD is pathetic.

[superhobo @ May 19th 2009 6:23AM]

Bryant: You need to get out more (on the internet) if this is the first time you've seen Intel/AMD fanboys.

[andy_usa @ May 19th 2009 6:47AM]

There's nothing wrong of being a fanboy as long as one doen't dis others for posting known facts about their products. I don't like the idea of "pwning" each other through immature wordings. That's not helpful at all. People should appreciate this competition since in the end, the winner would be us (the consumer). For instance, the console war between 360 and PS3 (I should also mention Wii) really fired up the competition. In return, we as consumers were benefited with many great titles and maybe some exclusives. To me, being a fanboy of something shows how one dedicate his time to support his belief instead of dissing the oponents with childish claims.

[digitallysick @ May 18th 2009 9:51PM]

While I can't blame AMD for doing this, but i also think they should focus on making better processors. They were ahead of intel during the Pentium 4 days , but they did not take full advantage of it

[Matt @ May 18th 2009 9:52PM]

I like it when the little guys win... it puts the big guys in their place... under the law, not above it

[Alex @ May 19th 2009 8:52AM]

Yeah, fuck big pharma, big oil, big record label, blah blah blah, wah wah wah.

Stick it to the big guy by buying crappier processors!

[why not the LS2LS7? @ May 18th 2009 10:00PM]

All this crowing doesn't make their chips more competitive.

[giantenemycrab @ May 18th 2009 10:00PM]

Go go gadget capitalism!

[ThreeDee912 @ May 18th 2009 10:10PM]

Digg it?
http://digg.com/hardware/AMD_breaks_free_makes_site_about_Intel_s_antitrust_ruling

(Yeah, I submitted it if you are wondering)

[goatpoacher @ May 18th 2009 10:10PM]

AMD is competitive at the low to mid-range. I don't see anything intel has that can compete with a Phenom X3 710 with the fourth core unlocked for $110 or so.