Two points of discussion on the 2022 General Court Judgment in Intel

Abstract

This article discusses the General Court Judgment of 26 January 2022 which annuls the part of the Commission Decision of 13 May 2009 in Intel related to the exclusivity or quasi-exclusivity rebates granted by Intel to a number of computer manufacturers and a microelectronics retailer. In particular it highlights reasons why, in the author’s view, the General Court Judgment, if left unchanged, could create a wrong precedent for the assessment of exclusivity rebates, and explains how the Judgment articulates the ECJ Judgment in a way which is at odds with the economic reality of those conducts, but also with the very philosophy of the ECJ Judgment.