삼성전자 美법인 임원 징역형 3년→8개월로 감형
미 법무부, D램 가격담합 25만달러 벌금과 징역형 발표
삼성전자의 미국 현지 반도체법인의 임원인 토마스 퀸 부사장이 과거 D램 가격 공모 혐의와 관련, 유죄를 인정하고 8개월의 징역형을 받는 데 합의했다.
컴퓨터 메모리칩인 D램 가격 담합 참여 혐의
22일 <로이터통신>과 <마켓워치>에 따르면 미국 법무부는 21일(현지시간) “미국 캘리포니아주 새너제이에 있는 삼성전자 미국법인의 토마스 퀸 마케팅 담당 부사장이 8개월의 징역형과 함께 25만달러의 벌금을 물기로 했으며 법무부의 향후 조사에도 협력키로 했다”고 발표했다.
<로이터통신>은 미 법무부가 이날 성명을 통해 “토머스 퀸 삼성전자 미국법인 마케팅 담당 부사장이 컴퓨터 메모리칩인 D램 가격 담합에 참여한 혐의를 인정하고 징역 8개월형과 25만달러의 벌금 납부에 동의했다”며 “가격담합 음모는 개인용컴퓨터, 서버, 핸드폰, 카메라와 케임콘솔 등에 사용되는 칩의 가격에서 일어났으며 킨 부사장은 자신의 직위와 역량을 가격담합을 하는 데 사용했다”고 밝혔다고 전했다.
이 통신은 이같은 가격담합 음모가 델, 휼렛팩커드, IBM, 애플, 게이트웨이, 선마이크로시스템스, 컴팩 등의 세계적인 컴퓨터 제조회사들에게 직접적인 영향을 끼쳤다고 밝히고, 삼성전자는 작년 10월 3억달러의 벌금을 내는 등 벌금액수가 9월 현재 7억3천1백만달러에 달한다고 전했다.
이 통신은 만약 킨 부사장이 기소됐다면 최소한 3년 이상의 징역형과 훨씬 많은 벌금이 부과됐을 것이라며 킨 부사장은 유죄를 인정한 삼성전자의 4번째 임원이라고 전했다.
이에 앞서 삼성전자 간부 3명과 하이닉스 간부 4명은 이미 D램 가격 담합과 관련해 유죄를 인정하고 징역형에 합의했다.
<마켓워치>는 과거 D램 반도체 가격 담합과 관련, 삼성전자.하이닉스.인피니온.마이크론 등 4개 회사에서 13명이 공모 혐의를 받고 있으며 총 7억3천1백만달러의 벌금이 부과됐다고 전했다.
다음은 미 법무부 성명 전문
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2006
WWW.USDOJ.GOVAT
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888
Samsung Executive Agrees to Plead Guilty, Serve Jail Time for Participating in Dram Price-Fixing Conspiracy
U.S. Executive Admits Role in Global Cartel, Agrees to Prison Term
WASHINGTON — A San Jose, Calif., executive of Samsung Semiconductor Inc. – the world’s largest manufacturer of a common computer component called dynamic random access memory or DRAM – has agreed to plead guilty and to serve jail time for participating in a global conspiracy to fix DRAM prices, the Department of Justice announced.
The charged executive, Thomas Quinn, participated in the price-fixing conspiracy in his capacity as vice president of marketing for memory products at Samsung Semiconductor Inc., a United States subsidiary of Korean memory maker Samsung Electronics Company Ltd. Quinn was charged with violating the Sherman Act in a one-count information alleging participation in an agreement to fix prices of DRAM and to coordinate bids in an auction held by a DRAM purchaser.
Under the plea agreement, which must be approved by the court, Quinn has agreed to serve eight months in prison and to pay a criminal fine of $250,000. In addition, Quinn has agreed to assist the Department in its ongoing investigation.
“Prison time for price-fixers remains the most potent deterrent to illegal cartel activity,” said Thomas O. Barnett, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department’s Antitrust Division. “Today’s action sends a clear message–those who engage in price-fixing schemes will be held accountable for their illegal conduct.”
Including today’s charge, four companies and 13 individuals have been charged and fines totaling more than $731 million have resulted from the Department’s DRAM investigation. The $731 million in criminal fines is the second highest total obtained by the Department of Justice in a criminal antitrust investigation into a specific industry.
DRAM is the most commonly used semiconductor memory product, providing high-speed storage and retrieval of electronic information for a wide variety of computer, telecommunication, and consumer electronic products. DRAM is used in personal computers, laptops, workstations, servers, printers, hard disk drives, personal digital assistants (PDAs), modems, mobile phones, telecommunication hubs and routers, digital cameras, video recorders and TVs, digital set top boxes, game consoles, and digital music players. There were approximately $7.7 billion in DRAM sales in the United States in 2004.
According to the one-count felony charge filed today in federal court in San Francisco, Quinn conspired with unnamed employees from other memory makers to fix the prices of DRAM sold to certain original equipment manufacturers from on or about April 1, 2001 to on or about June 15, 2002, and to coordinate bids on a Dec. 5, 2001 Sun Microsystems Inc., auction. The price-fixing scheme directly affected sales to U.S. computer makers Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, Compaq Computer Corporation, International Business Machines Corporation, Apple Computer Inc., Gateway Inc., and Sun Microsystems Inc., the Department said.
Quinn is charged with carrying out the price-fixing conspiracy by:
- Participating in meetings, conversations, and communications with competitors to discuss the prices of DRAM to be sold to certain customers; and
- Agreeing with competitors to coordinate bids submitted to Sun Microsystems Inc.
“This is the most recent charge in our continuing efforts to bring to justice both domestic and foreign-based executives who were involved with fixing DRAM prices,” said Scott D. Hammond, the Antitrust Division’s Director of Criminal Enforcement. “We are still very actively investigating antitrust violations in the DRAM industry.”
Quinn is the fourth Samsung executive to agree to a prison sentence in the DRAM investigation. Three foreign-based Samsung executives, Sun Woo Lee, Young Woo Lee, and Yeongho Kang, have already pleaded guilty and agreed to serve prison terms ranging from seven to eight months and to pay fines of $250,000 each. In addition, four Hynix Semiconductor Inc., executives, Dae Soo Kim, Chae Kyun Chung, Kun Chul Suh, and Choon Yub Choi, were charged with participating in the DRAM price-fixing conspiracy and agreed to plead guilty and serve jail terms ranging from five to eight months and to each pay a $250,000 fine. In December 2004, four Infineon executives, T. Rudd Corwin, Peter Schaefer, Gunter Hefner, and Heinrich Florian, pleaded guilty to the DRAM price-fixing conspiracy. The Infineon employees served jail terms ranging from four to six months and each paid a $250,000 fine.
Also, in December 2003 the Department charged Alfred Censullo, a Regional Sales Manager for Micron Technology Inc., with obstruction of justice. Censullo pleaded guilty and admitted to having withheld and altered documents responsive to a grand jury subpoena served on Micron. Censullo was sentenced to serve six months of home detention.
In total, four companies have been charged with price fixing in the DRAM investigation. Samsung pleaded guilty to the price-fixing conspiracy and was sentenced to pay a $300 million criminal fine in November 2005. Hynix, the world’s second-largest DRAM manufacturer, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $185 million criminal fine in May 2005. In January 2006, Japanese manufacturer Elpida Memory agreed to plead guilty and pay an $84 million fine. In October 2004, German manufacturer Infineon pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $160 million criminal fine.
Today’s charge is the result of an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in San Francisco.
Anyone with information concerning price-fixing or bid rigging in the DRAM industry should contact the San Francisco Office of the Antitrust Division at 415-436-6660 or the San Francisco Division of the FBI at (415) 553-7400. Case filings can be viewed on the Antitrust Division’s Web site, http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/.
컴퓨터 메모리칩인 D램 가격 담합 참여 혐의
22일 <로이터통신>과 <마켓워치>에 따르면 미국 법무부는 21일(현지시간) “미국 캘리포니아주 새너제이에 있는 삼성전자 미국법인의 토마스 퀸 마케팅 담당 부사장이 8개월의 징역형과 함께 25만달러의 벌금을 물기로 했으며 법무부의 향후 조사에도 협력키로 했다”고 발표했다.
<로이터통신>은 미 법무부가 이날 성명을 통해 “토머스 퀸 삼성전자 미국법인 마케팅 담당 부사장이 컴퓨터 메모리칩인 D램 가격 담합에 참여한 혐의를 인정하고 징역 8개월형과 25만달러의 벌금 납부에 동의했다”며 “가격담합 음모는 개인용컴퓨터, 서버, 핸드폰, 카메라와 케임콘솔 등에 사용되는 칩의 가격에서 일어났으며 킨 부사장은 자신의 직위와 역량을 가격담합을 하는 데 사용했다”고 밝혔다고 전했다.
이 통신은 이같은 가격담합 음모가 델, 휼렛팩커드, IBM, 애플, 게이트웨이, 선마이크로시스템스, 컴팩 등의 세계적인 컴퓨터 제조회사들에게 직접적인 영향을 끼쳤다고 밝히고, 삼성전자는 작년 10월 3억달러의 벌금을 내는 등 벌금액수가 9월 현재 7억3천1백만달러에 달한다고 전했다.
이 통신은 만약 킨 부사장이 기소됐다면 최소한 3년 이상의 징역형과 훨씬 많은 벌금이 부과됐을 것이라며 킨 부사장은 유죄를 인정한 삼성전자의 4번째 임원이라고 전했다.
이에 앞서 삼성전자 간부 3명과 하이닉스 간부 4명은 이미 D램 가격 담합과 관련해 유죄를 인정하고 징역형에 합의했다.
<마켓워치>는 과거 D램 반도체 가격 담합과 관련, 삼성전자.하이닉스.인피니온.마이크론 등 4개 회사에서 13명이 공모 혐의를 받고 있으며 총 7억3천1백만달러의 벌금이 부과됐다고 전했다.
다음은 미 법무부 성명 전문
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2006
WWW.USDOJ.GOVAT
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888
Samsung Executive Agrees to Plead Guilty, Serve Jail Time for Participating in Dram Price-Fixing Conspiracy
U.S. Executive Admits Role in Global Cartel, Agrees to Prison Term
WASHINGTON — A San Jose, Calif., executive of Samsung Semiconductor Inc. – the world’s largest manufacturer of a common computer component called dynamic random access memory or DRAM – has agreed to plead guilty and to serve jail time for participating in a global conspiracy to fix DRAM prices, the Department of Justice announced.
The charged executive, Thomas Quinn, participated in the price-fixing conspiracy in his capacity as vice president of marketing for memory products at Samsung Semiconductor Inc., a United States subsidiary of Korean memory maker Samsung Electronics Company Ltd. Quinn was charged with violating the Sherman Act in a one-count information alleging participation in an agreement to fix prices of DRAM and to coordinate bids in an auction held by a DRAM purchaser.
Under the plea agreement, which must be approved by the court, Quinn has agreed to serve eight months in prison and to pay a criminal fine of $250,000. In addition, Quinn has agreed to assist the Department in its ongoing investigation.
“Prison time for price-fixers remains the most potent deterrent to illegal cartel activity,” said Thomas O. Barnett, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department’s Antitrust Division. “Today’s action sends a clear message–those who engage in price-fixing schemes will be held accountable for their illegal conduct.”
Including today’s charge, four companies and 13 individuals have been charged and fines totaling more than $731 million have resulted from the Department’s DRAM investigation. The $731 million in criminal fines is the second highest total obtained by the Department of Justice in a criminal antitrust investigation into a specific industry.
DRAM is the most commonly used semiconductor memory product, providing high-speed storage and retrieval of electronic information for a wide variety of computer, telecommunication, and consumer electronic products. DRAM is used in personal computers, laptops, workstations, servers, printers, hard disk drives, personal digital assistants (PDAs), modems, mobile phones, telecommunication hubs and routers, digital cameras, video recorders and TVs, digital set top boxes, game consoles, and digital music players. There were approximately $7.7 billion in DRAM sales in the United States in 2004.
According to the one-count felony charge filed today in federal court in San Francisco, Quinn conspired with unnamed employees from other memory makers to fix the prices of DRAM sold to certain original equipment manufacturers from on or about April 1, 2001 to on or about June 15, 2002, and to coordinate bids on a Dec. 5, 2001 Sun Microsystems Inc., auction. The price-fixing scheme directly affected sales to U.S. computer makers Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, Compaq Computer Corporation, International Business Machines Corporation, Apple Computer Inc., Gateway Inc., and Sun Microsystems Inc., the Department said.
Quinn is charged with carrying out the price-fixing conspiracy by:
- Participating in meetings, conversations, and communications with competitors to discuss the prices of DRAM to be sold to certain customers; and
- Agreeing with competitors to coordinate bids submitted to Sun Microsystems Inc.
“This is the most recent charge in our continuing efforts to bring to justice both domestic and foreign-based executives who were involved with fixing DRAM prices,” said Scott D. Hammond, the Antitrust Division’s Director of Criminal Enforcement. “We are still very actively investigating antitrust violations in the DRAM industry.”
Quinn is the fourth Samsung executive to agree to a prison sentence in the DRAM investigation. Three foreign-based Samsung executives, Sun Woo Lee, Young Woo Lee, and Yeongho Kang, have already pleaded guilty and agreed to serve prison terms ranging from seven to eight months and to pay fines of $250,000 each. In addition, four Hynix Semiconductor Inc., executives, Dae Soo Kim, Chae Kyun Chung, Kun Chul Suh, and Choon Yub Choi, were charged with participating in the DRAM price-fixing conspiracy and agreed to plead guilty and serve jail terms ranging from five to eight months and to each pay a $250,000 fine. In December 2004, four Infineon executives, T. Rudd Corwin, Peter Schaefer, Gunter Hefner, and Heinrich Florian, pleaded guilty to the DRAM price-fixing conspiracy. The Infineon employees served jail terms ranging from four to six months and each paid a $250,000 fine.
Also, in December 2003 the Department charged Alfred Censullo, a Regional Sales Manager for Micron Technology Inc., with obstruction of justice. Censullo pleaded guilty and admitted to having withheld and altered documents responsive to a grand jury subpoena served on Micron. Censullo was sentenced to serve six months of home detention.
In total, four companies have been charged with price fixing in the DRAM investigation. Samsung pleaded guilty to the price-fixing conspiracy and was sentenced to pay a $300 million criminal fine in November 2005. Hynix, the world’s second-largest DRAM manufacturer, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $185 million criminal fine in May 2005. In January 2006, Japanese manufacturer Elpida Memory agreed to plead guilty and pay an $84 million fine. In October 2004, German manufacturer Infineon pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay a $160 million criminal fine.
Today’s charge is the result of an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in San Francisco.
Anyone with information concerning price-fixing or bid rigging in the DRAM industry should contact the San Francisco Office of the Antitrust Division at 415-436-6660 or the San Francisco Division of the FBI at (415) 553-7400. Case filings can be viewed on the Antitrust Division’s Web site, http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/.
<저작권자ⓒ뷰스앤뉴스. 무단전재-재배포금지>
