**New York’s attorney general has filed an anti-competition lawsuit against Intel, accusing it of using “illegal threats” to dominate microchip sales.**The firm is accused of using “bribery and coercion” to make manufacturers of personal computers buy its chips instead of those made by its rivals.
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said the lawsuit follows an investigation lasting almost two years.
No-one from Intel was immediately available for comment.
In May, Intel was fined $1.5bn (£948m) by European competition authorities.
The firm denied any wrongdoing in that case and is now appealing.
Mr Cuomo said Intel - the world’s largest maker of semiconductors - had been engaged in a “worldwide, systematic campaign of illegal conduct”.
“Rather than compete fairly, Intel used bribery and coercion to maintain a stranglehold on the market,” he added.
“Intel’s actions not only unfairly restricted potential competitors, but also hurt average consumers who were robbed of better products and lower prices.”