Samsung Official Agrees to Plead Guilty
81633
An executive with the U.S. unit of Samsung agreed to plead guilty for taking part in the price fixing of computer memory chips.
32425
THREE German executives and an American with microchip giant Infineon Technologies face jail terms and fines under plea agreements to settle a US probe into price-fixing, according to the Justice Department.
533231
Steven Woghin, the former general counsel of Computer Associates, will plead guilty to criminal charges.
378059
A former executive of Alcatel has pleaded guilty to taking part in a scheme to give more than $2.5 million in bribes to Costa Rican government officials for a mobile phone contract, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Thursday.
613777
Samsung and a US subsidiary have agreed to pay $90 million to settle charges that it colluded to keep the price of DRAM memory artificially high.
683405
(InfoWorld) - Samsung Electronics, the world's largest DRAM (dynamic RAM) maker, agreed to pay $90 million in a DRAM price fixing suit raised by a group of U.S. state governments, the first company named in the suit to reach such an accord. Samsung also agreed to assist the states in resolving price-fixing charges against other defendants named in the suit, the Office of the New York State Attorney General said in a statement on Tuesday. The agreement ends the case against Samsung. TheÂ lawsuit was filed last JulyÂ by New York and 40 other U.S. states in a joint antitrust effort against several DRAM (dynamic RAM) makers over alleged price-fixing, adding to industry woes amid an ongoing federal investigation that has already led to $731 million in fines. They alleged the companies violated antitrust laws and harmed consumers by conspiring to fix prices through artificial supply restraints, dividing markets among themselves and rigging bids on DRAM contracts during a four year period between 1998 and 2002. The price fixing scheme caused computer makers such as Apple and DellÂ to pay more for DRAM than they would have in a competitive market, the suit alleged, and the costs were then passed on to consumers. The Samsung settlement will be used to benefit victims of high DRAM prices, with $80 million going to consumers and other victims, and $10 million being paid out to state and local governments. New York's attorney general said the state's specific share of the settlement will be determined in the future. Samsung's Seoul office declined to comment on the settlement, saying its U.S. subsidiary was handling all issues regarding the case. Hynix Semiconductor, another company named in the suit, said it is too early to tell what impact the Samsung deal may have on the case. "We're still looking into the matter. We haven't decided anything yet," said Kim Ah-Young, a Hynix representative. The accord with Samsung is subject to approval by the federal court in San Francisco. The litigation will continue against other DRAM makers named in the suit, including U.S.-based Micron Technology, Infineon Technologies of Germany, South Korea's Hynix, Japan's Elpida Memory and NEC Electronics America, Taiwan's Mosel Vitelic and Nanya TechnologyÂ as well as their U.S. subsidiaries. The case by the states started after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation had already led to several guilty pleas, which resulted in millions of dollars in fines and jail time for a dozen individuals from four companies. In late 2005,Â Samsung was ordered to payÂ a $300 million criminal fine in the DOJ case, while South Korean rivalÂ Hynix Semiconductor agreed to payÂ $185 million. Infineon Technologies, of Germany, wasÂ first to pay a fineÂ of $160 million, in late 2004. Earlier last year, Japan'sÂ Elpida Memory agreed to plead guiltyÂ and pay a $84 million fine.
52917
(InfoWorld) - An executive at Samsung Electronics, the world's largest manufacturer of DRAM (dynamic RAM), has agreed to plead guilty and serve jail time for participating in a global price-fixing conspiracy, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said Thursday. The DOJ said Thomas Quinn participated in a price-fixing conspiracy in his position as vice president of marketing for memory products at Samsung Semiconductor Inc., Samsung's U.S. subsidiary. The DOJ charged Quinn with violating the U.S. Sherman Act, which lays out antimonopoly regulations. The DOJ alleged that he helped engineer an agreement to fix DRAM prices and to coordinate bids in a Dec. 5, 2001 Sun Microsystems Inc. auction. Under the plea agreement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, Quinn has agreed to serve an eight-month prison sentence and pay a US$250,000 fine. In addition, Quinn has agreed to assist the DOJ in its ongoing investigation, which it is pursuing in conjunction with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). "We are still very actively investigating antitrust violations in the DRAM industry," the DOJ's Antitrust Division director of criminal enforcement, Scott Hammond, said in a statement. DRAM is the most commonly used semiconductor memory product. The alleged price fixing harmed computer makers, by making manufacturers such as Apple Computer Inc., Dell Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Co. pay more for DRAM than they otherwise would have, the DOJ said. The costs were then passed on to consumers, it pointed out. In March,Â three other Samsung executives agreed to a similar plea deal. Sun Woo Lee, Samsung's senior manager of DRAM sales, agreed to a sentence of eight months in U.S. prison. Yeongho Kang, associate director of DRAM Marketing for Samsung's U.S. subsidiary, and Young Woo Lee, sales director for Samsung's German subsidiary, both agreed to serve seven months. The three also agreed to each pay a $250,000 fine. With Thursday's plea agreement, four companies and 13 individuals have been charged and fines totaling more than $731 million have resulted from the DOJ's investigation. Among other related plea deals and charges, Samsung was ordered in November 2005 to pay a $300 million fine. Hynix was ordered in May 2005 to pay $185 million. Elpida Memory agreed in January to pay $84 million. And Infineon agreed in October 2004 to pay $160 million. In addition to the DOJ case, similar investigations and charges are being pursued on the state level. Samsung faces charges in a price-fixing lawsuit filed in Manhattan by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, working with other states. And in July,Â 34 states filed a joint antitrust lawsuit against seven DRAM makersÂ over price fixing. That lawsuit did not include Samsung, but did include Micron Technology Inc.; Infineon Technologies AG; Hynix Semiconductor Inc.; Elpida Memory Inc.; NEC Electronics America Inc.; Mosel Vitelic Inc. and Nanya Technology Corp.
365826
A U.S. Army reservist accused of  abusing Iraqi prisoners has agreed to plead guilty to reduced  charges as part of a deal with military prosecutors, his  attorney said on Thursday.
203463
Tom Hall, the last of the four executives at Qwest Communications International awaiting trial, has agreed to plead guilty. His attorney told the court that Hall would be willing to enter a plea.
433000
LONDON, September 16 (New Ratings) - Infineon Technologies (IFX.ETR) has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a fine of $160 million to settle the federal charges of participating in an international conspiracy of DRAM price fixing.
546717
A former assistant treasurer at Enron Corp. (ENRNQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to committing securities fraud on Tuesday and will cooperate
161870
Seoul, Korea-based Samsung Electronics Co. said today it has set aside $100 million to cover costs associated with the price-fixing investigation by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) for alleged price-fixing
408588
The chief operating officer of Enron Corp.'s failed Internet unit pleaded guilty yesterday to a single criminal conspiracy charge and agreed to cooperate with the government, as prosecutors continued to build their case against the Houston energy company's top leaders.
535821
A former top Enron official pleaded guilty Wednesday to securities fraud and agreed to cooperate fully with the ongoing criminal investigation of Enron&#39;scollapse.
621353
Four sales executives of German chipmaker Infineon Technologies have agreed to plead guilty to participating in a conspiracy to fix the prices of computer memory chips, the US Department of Justice said Thursday.
292449
By Mark Johnson Associated Press  ALBANY, N.Y. -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest memory chip maker, agreed to pay $90 million to settle a lawsuit charging the company and others with price-fixing, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
339770
Former Gov. John G. Rowland will plead guilty Thursday to federal charges in U.S. District Court, the Associated Press has learned.