Electrolux EU 0561 C Bedienungsanleitung PDF herunterladen (Seite 23)

Vol. 1, N° 2, Summer 1994 EC COMPETITION POLICY NEWSLETTER PAGE 23

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION PROHIBITS, ON A PRELIMINARY BASIS, A CARTEL IN THE DUTCH

CRANE-HIRE SECTOR

The Commission considers that agreements notified by the

Federatie van Nederlandse Kraanverhuurbedrijven (FNK) and

the Stichting Certificatie Kraanverhuurbedrijf (SCK) are

incompatible with Article 85(1) of the EC Treaty. It has

accordingly decided initially to withdraw immunity from the

imposition of fines. It is continuing its examination of the

case with a view to taking a final decision.

The FNK (Dutch crane-hire association) and the SCK (crane

certification association), whose membership comprises

virtually the same firms, have introduced in the Netherlands

an agreement on the certification of mobile cranes. Some

190 crane-hire firms, with a total share of about 75% of the

Dutch market, are parties to the agreement. The agreement

prohibits parties to it from hiring cranes from non-member

firms. Any participating firms that hire cranes from

non-affiliated firms risk expulsion from the system.

Crane-hire firms may be affected not only in the

Netherlands, but also in neighbouring Member States.

On 28 October 1993 the Dutch courts ordered the

withdrawal of the ban on hiring cranes from non-affiliated

firms, pending a formal decision by the Commission on the

matter.

Following a preliminary examination of the agreement, the

Commission considers that the certification system is

incompatible with Article 85(1) of the EC Treaty and that

exemption under Article 85(3) of the EC Treaty is not

justified.

In defence of their conduct, the FNK and the SCK argue that

the SCK certification system gives users the assurance that

safety standards are met.

- In order to qualify for exemption, the FNK and the SCK

must inter alia show that the agreements and/or decisions

by associations of undertakings contribute to improving

the crane-hire business while allowing consumers a fair

share of the resulting benefit. The improvement must

entail objective and appreciable advantages such as to

compensate for any disadvantages they cause in the field

of competition.

- Most of the safety requirements which the SCK imposes

for certifying a crane-hire firm are also imposed by

national safety decrees. Official supervision of compliance

with such provisions is carried out by KeBoMa in

particular. Similarly, most of the non-safety-related

requirements which the SCK imposes, such as those

relating to the payment of tax and social security

contributions, registration with the Chamber of

Commerce, third-party insurance, creditworthiness and

application of the collective labour agreement, are already

covered by statutory provisions. The SCK goes beyond

the statutory requirements by imposing requirements

regarding the manner of conducting business, but that

alone is insufficient reason to regard the restrictions of

competition imposed as indispensable.

Voluntary certification is often useful if it:

- increases the quality and safety of the products and the

ability of the producer or service-provider to meet

particular requirements;

- promotes the free movement of goods in that it establishes

the necessary arrangements in industry for the mutual

recognition of quality and safety standards.

This is not the case with the SCK rules, which is why the

Commission has taken its decision to withdraw immunity

from fines.

The Commission's decision, adopted pursuant to Article

15(6) of Regulation No 17, is only limited in scope.

Agreements notified to the Commission by participants

cannot in principle be subject to the imposition of fines.

However, the Community regulations allow the Commission

to withdraw such immunity if it considers that the practices

are reprehensible.

The proceeding will continue with a view to the adoption of

a final decision by the Commission. IP/94/303

COMMISSION RULES ON COMPLAINT LODGED BY TAT (PARIS-LONDON)

The Commission has decided that the French authorities can

no longer refuse to allow Community air carriers to exercise

traffic rights on the Paris-London route operating from Orly

airport. The Commission's decision, which will be published

in the Official Journal of the European Communities, is in

response to a complaint lodged with the Commission by the

French company TAT European Airlines in September 1993.

This is the second Commission decision on the distribution

of traffic between airports within a single airport system

since the entry into force of the third package of air transport

liberalization measures on 1 January 1993 (see press release

IP(93) 432 regarding first decision).

The current rules for the distribution of traffic within the

Paris airport system are contained in a Decree adopted on 6

December 1993 by the French Minister for Transport. The

Decree provides that French domestic flights and flights

between France and Spain, Greece or Portugal can be

operated from either Orly or Charles de Gaulle airports, but

that only Charles de Gaulle can be used for the operation of

other intra-Community international air services, including

services between Paris and the United Kingdom.

The Commission considered that the distinction between

French domestic flights and other intra-Community flights

had discriminatory effects, in particular with regard to access

to French domestic connections operating from Orly. It

further considered that the measure ran contrary to the

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