[JURIST] European Commission [official website] investigators have again asked EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes [official website] to formally charge computer chip maker Intel [corporate website] with antitrust violations, according to a Wall Street Journal report [subscription required] Wednesday. In October, investigators first announced that they had gathered enough evidence to prosecute Intel [JURIST report] on antitrust charges, and brought their information to Kroes, but an internal "devil's advocate" panel disapproved the suggested charges. Kroes must now decide whether to formally prosecute Intel in the six-year old investigation, or drop the case.

Consumer groups and rival chip maker Advanced Micro Designs (AMD) [corporate website] say consumers have fewer options because Intel has used coercive tactics to gain an edge on its competitors. Tactics include issuing rebates to PC makers in exchange for their use of Intel chips. In September, a US federal judge ruled [JURIST report] that AMD could not proceed with a major portion of its case accusing Intel of anticompetitive practices [JURIST report] outside the United States. Reuters has more.