DRAM Price Fixing Scandal
Major DRAM manufacturers conspired to fix prices of memory chips between 1999 and 2002, resulting in over $730 million in U.S. criminal fines and prison sentences for executives.
Background
The DRAM price fixing scandal (1999–2002) was a global conspiracy among the world's largest memory chipmakers (Samsung, Hynix, Infineon, Micron, and others) to fix the price of DRAM—a type of computer memory chip used in PCs, servers, and consumer electronics. The cartel operated during the dot-com boom and bust, when demand for memory was volatile. The U.S. Department of Justice launched a criminal investigation in 2002; by 2005–2006, four companies had pleaded guilty and paid over $730 million in fines. Several executives served prison terms. The scandal is notable for its scale—DRAM is a $25B+ industry—and because it revealed that the world's leading tech suppliers had secretly colluded for years, inflating costs for computer manufacturers (Dell, HP, Apple) and ultimately consumers.