FTC probes Rambus

Zardon · May 14, 2002, 04:53 PM

Rambus yesterday confirmed that it was the subject of an Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation. Shares fell 5 per cent on the news in after-hours trading.

Rambus says it is co-operating with the FTC, but then have you ever heard of a company which says it is not co-operating with the FTC, or the SEC?

The FTC will not say what the probe is about, but rumours are circulating that it is considering an antitrust suit against the firm.

It's been awfully quiet on the legal front for Rambus recently, so it's back to the good old/bad old days for the memory chip designer.

DRAM makers are unhappy with Rambus's royalty rates, which they consider are far too high. Of course, Rambus has a monopoly over RDRAM design, which means the DRAM companies have to pay to play with this memory technology.

By Drew Cullen

May 14, 2002, 04:53 PM	#1
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	FTC probes Rambus Rambus yesterday confirmed that it was the subject of an Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation. Shares fell 5 per cent on the news in after-hours trading. Rambus says it is co-operating with the FTC, but then have you ever heard of a company which says it is not co-operating with the FTC, or the SEC? The FTC will not say what the probe is about, but rumours are circulating that it is considering an antitrust suit against the firm. It's been awfully quiet on the legal front for Rambus recently, so it's back to the good old/bad old days for the memory chip designer. DRAM makers are unhappy with Rambus's royalty rates, which they consider are far too high. Of course, Rambus has a monopoly over RDRAM design, which means the DRAM companies have to pay to play with this memory technology. By Drew Cullen