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Intel denies $100 subsidy on ultrabooks

An Asia-based report had claimed that the chipmaker was offering PC makers a $100 subsidy in order to bring down ultrabook pricing. But Intel today says that's false.

Brooke Crothers Former CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
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HP Folio 13 is priced $899.99.
HP Folio 13 is priced $899.99. Hewlett-Packard

Intel is not providing a $100 subsidy on ultrabooks, the company said today, contradicting an Asia-based report.

In that report, Taipei-based Digitimes asserted that Intel is offering a $100 subsidy for ultrabooks, which, in turn, will allow manufacturers to drop prices aggressively on the ultraslim laptops.

"There is no $100 subsidy for ultrabooks," Bill Calder, an Intel spokesman, told CNET. "The report from Digitimes was false," he said.

Intel does offer various marketing incentives as a normal course of business. An example of an Intel co-marketing campaign includes Intel Inside, where Intel provides some advertising dollars to PC makers.

Another report from Digitimes said that ultrabook prices will fall to $499 by 2013, citing comments from Acer president Jim Wong. The report also said that Acer is currently shipping 100,000 ultrabooks each month--a surprisingly high number--and is expected to ship 250,000-300,000 units by the end of 2011.

Toshiba, Acer, and Hewlett-Packard are now selling ultrabooks for under $900.