FTC moves to suspend antitrust hearing against Intel and discuss settlement options

Late last year, chipmaker Intel became the subject of sweeping antitrust investigations from the European Commission, the state of New York, and the US Federal Trade Commission.

Today, lawyers for both Intel and the FTC have filed a motion to suspend the trial while both parties consider potential settlement of the case, which was filed in December of 2009. The motion, according to the announcement, opens a window through July 22, when Intel and the FTC will discuss a consent order, which is currently confidential.

A consent order in a case such as this is an agreement by the defendant that he will cease any activities that a government agency deemed illegal to avoid a long and potentially expensive court case.

Though the details of the consent order are not known, the FTC's allegations against Intel are. They include: