Intel has recently notified its partners that the company will fully release its Thunderbolt technology in April of 2012 with several first-tier PC players already preparing to launch Thunderbolt-supported motherboards, notebooks and desktop PCs, according to sources from PC players.To speed up the standardization of Thunderbolt, Intel is cooperating with Apple and Apple is the sole vendor currently to have PC products featuring Thunderbolt technology. As demand for the technology has seen obvious growth, Intel is ready to release the technology for public use.
Due to Thunderbolt chip costs being more than US$20 and the solution running a conflict with USB 3.0 in terms of next-generation data transmission technology, the Thunderbolt did not receive strong attention from the IT industry when announced, but as Apple has largely adopted the technology into its products such as monitor, MacBook Pro, iMac, MacBook Air and MacBook Mini, it has strongly boosted demand.
With the cost for adopting Thunderbolt technology expected to drop in the second half of 2012, the technology should be standardized gradually in the future, the sources noted.
Currently Sony is expected to adopt Thunderbolt technology into its product lines with players such as Asustek Computer also expected to adopt the technology into their high-end notebook products. Gigabyte Technology, which has been aggressively adopting new transmission technology into its product line, is also expected to launch Thunderbolt-featured motherboard in April of 2012 to compete against Asustek and ASRock.
Intel Corp.'s last major antitrust fight, against New York state officials, appears headed to state court after rulings by a federal judge in Delaware.
U.S. District Judge Leonard Stark on Friday canceled a Feb. 14 trial in the high-profile case filed by New York's attorney general, who charged Intel with monopolistic tactics in the market for microprocessor chips.
The order followed a letter to the judge from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who proposed dropping the federal case in view of recent developments that reduced the amount of damages that New York could seek. Mr. Schneiderman said his office would instead pursue damages in New York state court to address "Intel's egregious and illegal conduct."
An Intel spokesman declined comment Saturday. But the company has insisted it acted lawfully, and earlier in December said it was "gratified" that the judge had granted motions by the company that narrowed the case.
Intel, which makes chips that act as calculating engines in most personal computers, has been dogged for much of the past decade by allegations that it used illegal tactics to prevent rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. from gaining a broader foothold in the market.
In August 2010, Intel agreed to settle charges by the Federal Trade Commission that it unlawfully stifled competition in the microprocessor market, a pact that required the company to modify some sales practices. That settlement involved no financial penalties, but Intel previously agreed to pay $1.25 billion to AMD to settle a private antitrust case. Intel also paid a $1.45 billion fine ordered by antitrust enforcers in Europe, a ruling it is appealing.
New York's case was filed in November 2009 by Andrew Cuomo, who was then the state's attorney general and is now its governor. The suit quoted liberally from emails sent by senior officials of Intel and customers, such as Dell Inc., to support allegations that Intel improperly paid billions of dollars in kickbacks to computer makers to help ensure their loyalty as customers.
The suit argued that consumers and public entities in the state wound up paying more than they should have for PCs because of Intel's actions. Intel, rejecting those arguments, asked the judge to throw out parts of the case.
Judge Stark on Dec. 7 agreed with Intel that the state was entitled to ask for financial penalties and injunctions, but not treble damages. He also ruled the case should only consider three years of computer purchases, not the four-year and six-year periods New York was seeking under different claims.
Mr. Schneiderman, noting the prospect of smaller damage awards following the judge's rulings, said the state nevertheless hopes to convince a jury that its claims against Intel have merit. "We intend to vigorously prosecute our state law claims on behalf of the people of the state of New York," a spokesman for the attorney general said Monday.
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