92000E1416

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1416/00

by Roberto Bigliardo (TDI) to the Commission

(3 May 2000)

Subject: The Telecom Italia Mobile company

The Telecom Italia company is regularly quoted on the stock exchange and subject to the rules governing private companies.

However, the company of which it is an offshoot, SIP, was a public company enjoying a monopoly position.

The agreement reached between certain trade unions and the telecom company involves direct intervention by the Italian State, which meets certain costs. There are other companies in Italy operating in the same market sector as Telecom Italia and which do not enjoy the same economic assistance.

Does the Commission not consider therefore that the agreement to make unemployment assistance available to Telecom Italia will distort the market to the detriment of other operators and does it not agree that the restructuring should not be financed with public funds to the detriment of new operators who already have to come to terms with a market that was previously a monopoly and are now seeing Telecom Italia given special treatment in the shape of a reorganisation that is of no benefit to the community at large?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(3 July 2000)

The Commission is not aware of any financial interventions by the state in favour of Telecom Italia related to the financing of part of the costs of the undertaking's restructuring plan.

The availability of social security support measures, such as anticipated pensioning or other unemployment schemes is not exclusively destined to Telecom and, as a matter of principle, is open to all undertakings having significant number of excess personnel. In this sense, it does not constitute a discriminatory measure in the sense of Article 87 (ex Article 92) of the EC Treaty.