Intel gets in trouble as CCI fines it heavily for failing to honor the warranty for CPUs that were bought from abroad.
Competition Commission of India Fines Intel a $30 Million for the Discriminatory Nature of its Warranty Policy in India
Apart from losing ground to AMD in the desktop CPU market, Intel is now facing serious charges under Section 4 of the Competition Act, 2002, in India, which prohibits the abuse of dominant market position. Intel, a dominant desktop CPU seller in the country, is now facing legal consequences for enforcing a discriminatory warranty policy that has reportedly denied consumers from warranty claims if they bought the boxed desktop CPUs from abroad.
Competion Commission of India has imposed a penalty on Intel Corporation for its India Specific Warranty Policy in respect of Boxed Microprocessors.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) passed an order on 12.02.2026 under the provisions of Section 27 of the Competition Act, 2002 (Act) imposing a penalty of INR 27.38 crores upon Intel Corporation (Intel) for contravention of provisions of Section 4 of the Act.
The case originated from the Information filed by Matrix Info Systems Private Limited under Section 19(1)(a) of the Act. The Informant alleged that Intel amended its warranty policy for India with effect from 25.04.2016. As per this new policy, Intel would entertain warranty requests for Intel Boxed Micro Processors in India only when the same are purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel (‘India Specific Warranty Policy’). As a result of this India Specific Warranty Policy, Intel did not acknowledge warranty requests on its BMPs that are purchased from its authorised distributors in the rest of the world and instead redirected them to the country of purchase to avail the warranty.
Based on the evidence available, the Commission held Intel to be dominant in the relevant market of Boxed Micro Processors for desktops in India. The Commission found India Specific Warranty Policy discriminatory in comparison with Intel’s warranty policies in China, Australia and rest of the world. The Commission also found the aforesaid policy to have limited the choice of consumers and parallel importers and thereby causing an appreciable adverse effect on Indian consumers. Accordingly, the Commission
found the conduct of Intel in contravention of provisions of Section 4 of the Act.
The Commission, considering the fact that the India Specific Warranty Policy was in place for eight years, imposed penalty @ 8% on the average relevant turnover of Intel. However, considering the mitigating factors including the discontinuation of the aforesaid policy w.e.f. 01.04.2024, the Commission reduced the amount and imposed a penalty of INR 27.38 crores on Intel. The Commission also directed Intel to widely publicise the withdrawal of the impugned India Specific Warranty Policy, and submit a compliance report.
The order was passed in Case No.05 of 2019 and a copy is available on the CCI website at www.cci.gov.in.
As per the ruling announced on February 12, the Competition Commission of India has determined that Intel has enforced a discriminatory warranty practice in the Indian market during the time frame: April 25, 2016, to April 1, 2024. Intel has been fined a whopping US$30 million or INR 27.38 Crore for the same, and this is due to not honoring the warranty claims of users who have bought Intel boxed desktop CPUs from another country. As per the discriminatory policy, if the product was bought from outside India, users were required to return the product to the country of purchase to apply for the warranty claims.
This practice affected CPUs that were still under warranty, which the CCI deemed more discriminatory than Intel’s warranty policies in other markets. Moreover, CCI has ordered Intel to publicize the fact that its controversial warranty policy from India has been withdrawn and that it also has to submit a compliance report that details the corrective measures it has taken.
News Source: IT Home
About the author: Sarfraz Khan is a hardware reporter with a focus on PC components and the builder community. With years of experience writing about PC hardware and laptops, his work has been featured on several reputable technology publications. Sarfraz's hands-on experience is demonstrated through his first-person accounts of using and comparing different hardware configurations, providing practical and relatable insights for everyday users. His technical analysis is respected by peers in the enthusiast community and has been cited by specialized hardware sites such as Germany's Igor's Lab.
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