In a new round of infringement proceedings for Telecoms Rules, the European Commission has decided to refer two cases to the European Court of Justice, and opened two new infringement proceedings. Three reasoned opinions, the second stage of an infringement proceeding, have also been sent and eight infringement cases are now closed. The most important issue of this round of telecoms infringement proceedings is the independence of national telecoms regulators.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission has requested under EC Treaty state aid rules clarifications from Austria concerning the public service remit, financing and control of the public service broadcaster ORF. Following several complaints, the European Commission has come to the preliminary view that the current financing system is no longer in line with the EU's state aid rules. The Austrian authorities now have the opportunity to submit their comments and to propose changes to the funding system.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission has decided to refer Portugal to the European Court of Justice as it considers that the special rights held by the State in Portugal Telecom discourage investment from other Member States in violation of EC Treaty rules.
[European Commission Press Release]

The first benchmark report on international roaming has been published today by the European Regulators’ Group. This report confirms that implementation of the roaming regulation has generally gone smoothly with a high level of compliance in all EU Member States. The European Commission welcomes the findings of this report and urges national regulators to continue monitoring developments so that all European consumers benefit fully from lower roaming charges when making or receiving calls from abroad.
[European Commission Press Release]

European Commission Decision 2008/49/EC of 12 December 2007 concerning the implementation of the Internal Market Information System (IMI) as regards the protection of personal data
[[2008] OJ L 13/18]

The European Commission has decided to initiate two formal antitrust investigations against Microsoft Corp concerning two separate categories of alleged infringements of EC Treaty rules on abuse of a dominant market position (Article 82). The first case where proceedings have been opened is in the field of interoperability in relation to a complaint by the European Committee for Interoperable Systems (ECIS). The second area where proceedings have been opened is in the field of tying of separate software products following inter alia a complaint by Opera.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission has published a consultation paper on the future framework which will apply to State funding of public service broadcasting. This consultation gives EU Member States and stakeholders the opportunity to submit their views at an early stage, before any European Commission proposal, on the possible revision of the Broadcasting Communication – first adopted in 2001. Comments should be submitted by 10 March 2008. The consultation documents include a questionnaire as well as an explanatory memorandum which gives an overview of the current rules, the relevant European Commission decision-making practice and the possible scope for amendments. Key issues for discussion are the public service remit in the new media environment and control of overcompensation. Having reviewed the comments, the European Commission may come forward later this year with a proposal for a revised Broadcasting Communication, with a view to its adoption in the first half of 2009.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission welcomes Apple's announcement to equalise prices for downloads of songs from its iTunes online store in Europe within the next six months. This puts an end to the different treatment of UK consumers who currently have to pay higher prices for downloads. The different treatment to UK consumers was a major concern for Which?, a UK consumer protection organisation, who filed a formal complaint with the European Commission. The European Commission's antitrust proceedings have also clarified that it is not agreements between Apple and the major record companies which determine how the iTunes store is organised in Europe. Consequently, the European Commission does not intend to take further action in this case.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission has today recognised the recent efforts made by the Belgian telecoms regulator, IBPT (Institut Belge des services postaux et des télécommunications) to enhance broadband competition in the Belgian market by making the regulation more effective. In a letter sent today, the European Commission asks IBPT to reinforce the provisions allowing new entrants to use the local network of the historical incumbent operator to provide broadband services to end users (local loop unbundling) with a view to promoting sustainable infrastructure-based competition. The European Commission also asks the Belgian telecoms regulator to closely examine the level of competition for broadband services in the end-user market.
[European Commission Press Release]

The European Commission has decided to give a new boost to Europe's online content sector. EU citizens should be able to enjoy easier and faster access to a rich variety of music, TV programmes, films or games via the Internet, mobile phones or other devices. The European Commission therefore encourages the content industry, telecoms companies and Internet service providers to work closely together to make available more content online, while at the same time ensuring a robust protection of intellectual property rights. The European Commission also wants to facilitate copyright licences for online content covering the territory of several or all of the EU Member States. According to European Commission studies, a truly Single Market without borders for Creative Online Content could strengthen considerably the competitiveness of Europe's music, film and games industry and allow retail revenues of the sector to quadruple by 2010 if clear and consumer-friendly measures are taken by industry and public authorities.
[European Commission Press Release]

European Commission Recommendation 2007/879/EC of 17 December 2007 on relevant product and service markets within the electronic communications sector susceptible to ex ante regulation in accordance with Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services
[[2007] OJ L 344/65]