FTC probes Rambus
The US Federal Trade Commission is now investigating accusations of antitrust violations brought by Hyundai Electronics Industries Co. Ltd. and Micron Technology Inc. against Rambus Inc. The probe centers on whether Rambus violated rules set out by the Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (JEDEC) standards deliberation body. According to EBN, the FTC activity centers on allegations that Rambus failed to disclose it was pursuing patents for synchronous DRAM while representatives of the company were attending open JEDEC sessions where the technology was being discussed. Analysts and executives who participated in the JEDEC discussions have reported that FTC investigators have questioned them regarding the issue.
Both Hyundai Electronics and Micron Technology are being sued in a German court by Rambus. Rambus claims licensing fees for the use of its patented SDRAM technologies. Court papers say Hyundai has asked for the declassification of Rambus documents submitted to the U.S. District Court in San Jose so that the FTC can use the information in the antitrust investigation.
The source document is at ebnews.com.
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