Infineon Technologies AG, Europe’s second-largest chipmaker, Samsung Electronics Co and Hynix Semiconductor Inc are among nine chipmakers who agreed to pay a total of 331.2 million euros (US$403.5 million) in the first settlement of a price-fixing case with EU antitrust regulators.
Mitsubishi Electric Corp, Elpida Memory Inc, Hitachi Ltd, Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技), Toshiba Corp and NEC Corp also agreed to pay fines as part of the settlement. Micron Technology Inc received immunity in the case, the commission said in a statement yesterday. Samsung will pay the biggest fine of 145.7 million euros, followed by Infineon, which will pay 56.7 million euros.
“By acknowledging their participation in a cartel, the companies have allowed the commission to bring this long-running investigation to a close and to free up resources to investigate other suspected cartels,” Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said in the statement. Such settlements in the future are “expected to speed up investigations significantly.”
The settlement is the first time the Brussels-based commission has reached an agreement with companies involved in a price-fixing probe. All companies that agree to the settlement terms as proposed by the commission receive a 10 percent reduction in their fine.
“Samsung accepts the findings of the Commission’s inquiry and is committed to conducting its business operations in full compliance,” it said in an e-mailed statement yesterday. “The conclusion of this inquiry, which will not impede Samsung’s day-to-day operations or its ability to meet existing or future obligations, enables Samsung to move forward.”
Hynix was fined 51.5 million euros, Toshiba 17.6 million euros, Mitsubishi 16.6 million euros and Nanya 1.8 million euros.
NEC was fined 10.3 million euros and jointly with Elpida and Hitachi got a 8.5 million-euro penalty and another joint one with Hitachi of 2.1 million euros.
“Hynix has already set aside provisioning for the fines and therefore there shouldn’t be any impact on the company’s financials,” Park Seong-ae, a spokeswoman at the company, said by phone yesterday.
A US Justice Department antitrust probe into computer memory chips used in mobile phones and computers resulted in four companies, including Samsung, being fined US$731 million. Samsung executives were convicted of criminal charges in the US investigation.
Micron wasn’t fined in the EU probe because it had told the commission about the cartel in 2002.
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