The anti-trust arm of the European Commission today denied that it had reached any provisional decision in its ongoing probe of Intel’s marketing and sales practices.

EC competition spokesman Jonathan Todd said: "There is no provisional or internal decision on this case. The investigation is very much active and ongoing," reports Reuters.

The newspaper had said that the European Union anti-trust authority planned to take action against Intel’s marketing and sales practices by this summer. It reckoned that decision had already been made by EU commissioner Neelie Kroes because the EC had gathered enough evidence against the world’s biggest chip maker following a lawsuit by rival AMD.

The paper also claimed that the EU would prevent Intel from marketing its microprocessors to PC vendors at a marked down price, and that the authority would forbid the company from subsidising retailer's advertising costs.

The EU has been sniffing around Intel's business practices in Europe for six years, but the investigation got a second wind in 2005 when AMD formally accused its arch-rival of using illegal tactics to dominate the PC and server markets.

In July last year the EU filed formal anti-trust charges against Intel.

Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy told Reuters yesterday: "We continue to work with the Commission to attempt to convince them that our business practices are well within the law." ®

Related stories

• Intel braces for billion Euro fine (11 May 2009)
• EU circulates 'draft' Intel verdict, readies fine (23 April 2009)
• Intel takes legal swing at Korean antitrust decision (11 December 2008)
• Intel details objections to antitrust probe (26 November 2008)
• Law Commissions want to keep UK consumers' refund rights (11 November 2008)
• Intel misses Competition Commission deadline (28 October 2008)
• Intel disputes EU's probing procedure (14 October 2008)
• EU complaint is just more of the same, says Intel (18 July 2008)
• EU thumps Intel with more anti-AMD charges (17 July 2008)
• EU dumps more anti-trust charges on Intel (16 July 2008)
• AMD vs Intel US FTC cracks open anti-trust investigation on Intel (6 June 2008)
• Intel fined $25m (5 June 2008)
• US protests to WTO over EU 'IT' tariffs (28 May 2008)
• Update Intel coughs up EC anti-trust furball (7 January 2008)
• Intel asks EC to relax deadline (8 October 2007)
• EU files anti-trust charges against Intel (26 July 2007)
• EC preps Intel antitrust charges - report (17 January 2007)
• Intel likely to face EC charges (4 October 2006)
• AMD vs Intel Germans hand EC evidence on Intel (12 September 2006)
• EU questions Spain's Intel love (6 April 2006)
• EC officials raid Intel offices (12 July 2005)