Intergraph Corp says it is still having problems getting the latest information, support and products out of Intel Corp, and has gone back to the courts to get it to comply with the preliminary injunction issued against it back in April 1998. The Federal Court issued the injunction to protect Intergraph’s ongoing business, pending the outcome of its lawsuit against Intel for illegal coercive actions, patent infringements and antitrust violations.
I am amazed at the degree to which Intel ignores the Court said Intergraph CEO Jim Meadlock. They continue to stonewall on information and samples we must have if we are to compete as a manufacturer of Intel-based systems. Meadlock said he had given Intel the benefit of the doubt time and time again but said that the culminative effect of this pattern of abuse is that Intergraph’s hardware related business is now in serious jeopardy.
Specifically, said Meadlock, Intel failed to supply Carmel chipset information and support needed for it to develop high-end workstations using the Pentium III Xeon. Intel refused to supply the information necessary to test graphics subsystems, according to Intergraph, and also failed to supply the essential software, while supplying it to competitors months earlier. Intergraph says it was effectively barred from competing in a multimillion dollar contract because Intel refused to supply it with letters certifying that it used Intel components – something that competitive companies had access to. And Intergraph claims it has been frozen out of product launches and web site promotions.
If it can’t get Intel to comply with the order, Intergraph is in trouble. It has to hold out at least until June 12, 2000, when the trial is set to begin. And even with Intel’s full cooperation, the Intel-based workstation market, particularly at the high-end, is tough, as Silicon Graphics Inc has already found out.
