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Italian gambling
- Italy had no right to prosecute three bookmakers for collecting bets without the necessary authorisation, according to a European Court of Justice judgement on Tuesday (6 March). The court ruled that the bookmakers could not be held responsible for Italian legislation limiting access to the gambling business. The ruling could have implications for state monopolies on gambling across the EU.
- A merger between music businesses Sony and Bertelsmann AG (BMG) is the subject of a European Commission competition inquiry, it was announced on Thursday (1 March). The merger was approved by the Commission in 2004, but its approval prompted complaints from independent record labels and was last year annulled by the European Court of First Instance.
- The European Commission on Thursday (1 March) sent a statement of objections to software giant Microsoft over its failure to comply with a 2004 Commission decision that has already cost the US-based company €500 million. This is the second threat of penalties sent to Microsoft since the Commission accused it of abusing its market-dominant position. Microsoft has four weeks to respond, after which it will face daily fines.
- Anglo-French channel operator Eurotunnel on Tuesday (6 March) announced pre-tax losses of €204m. Operating profits rose 46% last year but rising debts since the tunnel opened in 1994 led to a net loss.
- Endesa called off a shareholders’ meeting scheduled for 20 March, after Germany’s E.ON, which has made a €41 billion bid for the Spanish utility company, dropped attempts to have a 10% limit on voting rights lifted. E.ON’s decision followed an announcement from Italian rival Enel that it had increased its stake in Endesa.
EU lags behind US
- The EU economy is decades behind the US, according to a study from retailers’ association Eurocommerce on Monday (5 March). The study reports that the US hit 2006 European levels of employment in 1978, the same year US research and development investments matched today’s European commitments. EU gross domestic product (GDP) this year matched US GDP from 1985 and current European productivity levels were reached in the US in 1989.
Airbus protests
- Thousands of Airbus factory workers protested on the streets of Toulouse on Tuesday (6 March) against 4,300 French job cuts planned by the aircraft giant. Leading candidates in the French election campaign have all promised to help workers affected by the Airbus restructuring plan.
As observers await the European Commission’s verdict on allegations of anti-competitive behaviour brought by Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) against arch-rival Intel in 2000, the gloves have come off in a parallel investigation on the other side of the Atlantic.
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