First off Like I said you made a great point and it's not that i totally disagree
But rules are Rules and they are made to be broken...
The difference here is It was Collusion Under Knife
Intel had Companies Collude under threat......
Example.. You use OUR products exclusively or we Offer your competition Lower prices and cut you out of the loop...after you already invested millions into producing product based off our technology..... That's bad
I would totally agree if Dell went to Intel for an exclusive Contract
such as they only use INTEL products and no other for a price cut... That's OK
EDIT: It's only ok if your WalMart @least according to our laws
Its all good man, i know you dont totally disagree.
No disrespect meant.
Its all about free market though man. Government doesnt own intel, and shouldnt have any say in thier deals. (IMHO of course, I do not presume this to be fact. To each his own)
So ok, Intel says to me "If you buy AMD's products, we're going to offer your competitors lower prices and cut you out of the loop."
My response? "Who cares motherf***** I'm buying AMD what do i care what your prices are?"
And if I had already spent millions investing in Intels architecture BEFORE signing a contract with Intel (that would have let me know about the "deal" in the first place, and I could have made an educated decision) if I did that before signing a contract, then thats my own damn fault for being an idiot. And if Intel is changing contracts, or offering these deals after contracts were made, then they need to be taken to court for THAT, not for "anti-competitive practices." The very word "anti-competitive practice" is an oxymoron. They're competing allright. Sure they're fighting dirty, but thats competition. Making everyone play like little sissies is anti-competitive IMO. Instead of bitching, AMD needs to step up thier game and play a little rough themselves. They've got the clout. Now get the stones.
And if Intel came to me and said "We're going to give you a discount if you buy only our products" I'd say "allright hold on lemme give AMD a call.... *ring* hey AMD, intel wants to force you out, what's it worth to you to keep supplying me with processors? What kind of discount can you give me?"
The problem here is that every company, both AMD and OEMs want the government to step in and play referee instead of hiking up thier socks and getting a little dirty. And Intel seems to be the only one with the balls to throw a few checks into the mix. And believe you me, the more checks, the more punches that companies throw, especially two power players like AMD and Intel, the lower prices get.