Competition Comm slaps Rs 27 cr fine on tech major Intel Corp for unfair biz practices

The matter pertains to the provision that warranty requests for Intel Boxed Micro Processors in India would be entertained only when the same are purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel. As per this new policy, Intel would entertain warranty requests for Intel Boxed Micro Processors in India only when the same are purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel, the statement said.

The Competition Commission has imposed a fine of Rs 27.38 crore on Intel Corp for indulging in anti-competitive practices with respect to India-specific warranty policy for its boxed microprocessors. The penalty has been imposed on the company for abusing its dominant position in the market for Boxed Micro Processors (BMPs) for desktops in India. In a statement on Thursday, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said the India-specific warranty policy was discriminatory in comparison with Intel's warranty policies in China, Australia and the rest of the world. The commission also found the policy to have limited the choice of consumers and parallel importers and thereby, causing an appreciable adverse effect on Indian consumers, it added. The matter pertains to the provision that warranty requests for Intel Boxed Micro Processors in India would be entertained only when the same are purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel. Considering the fact that the India-specific warranty policy was in place for eight years, the regulator imposed the penalty, translating to 8 per cent of the average relevant turnover of Intel. ''However, considering the mitigating factors, including the discontinuation of the aforesaid policy w.e.f. April 1, 2024, the Commission reduced the amount and imposed a penalty of Rs 27.38 crore on Intel,'' the statement said. Further, CCI has directed Intel to widely publicise the withdrawal of the impugned India-specific warranty policy and submit a compliance report. The watchdog started looking into the matter after a complaint filed by Matrix Info Systems Pvt Ltd regarding the company amending its warranty policy for India with effect from April 25, 2016. As per this new policy, Intel would entertain warranty requests for Intel Boxed Micro Processors in India only when the same are purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel, the statement said. ''As a result of this India-specific warranty policy, Intel did not acknowledge warranty requests on its BMPs that are purchased from its authorised distributors in the rest of the world and instead redirected them to the country of purchase to avail the warranty,'' it was alleged in the complaint.

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