European Union News - 2009

On 2 April 2009 at the second High Level Conference on Counterfeiting and Piracy, Internal Market and Services Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, together with Members of the European Parliament, will launch a European Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy. By enhancing cooperation across the EU, the Observatory will be at the forefront in the fight against fake goods or illegal downloading and other infringements of intellectual property rights. A wide range of stakeholders representing business, public administrations, enforcement and civil society are expected to attend the event.

Electronic communication services and networks provide the backbone of European economy. 93% of EU companies and 51% of Europeans actively used the internet in 2007. However natural disasters, terrorist attacks, malicious human action and hardware failure can pose serious risks to Europe's critical information infrastructures. Recent large scale attacks on Estonia, Lithuania and Georgia proved that essential electronic communication services and networks are under constant threat. Preparing Europe to act in case of major disruptions or attacks is the goal of a new strategy proposed today by the European Commission.

The Directorate-General ‘Information Society and Media’ has set up a High Level Expert Group on Digital Libraries with a Commission Decision of 25 March 2009 published in the Official Journal of the European Union (28.3.2009  L 82/9)

United Nations negotiations on the next climate change agreement, which will will be held in Bonn between March 29th and April 8th 2009, will be focused on making tangible progress towards an ambitious new global agreement. This new agreement, which would take effect in 2013, is due to be concluded at the Copenhagen U.N. climate conference in December.

As part of the Small Business Act implementation, the Commission in close cooperation with Member States has established the new ‘Your Europe - Business’ portal, which gives entrepreneurs easy access to information on doing business in other EU Member States. This new portal has been re-launched in the occasion of the 7th European Business Summit which was held in Brussels between March 26th and 27th.

The internet provides a previously unimaginable level of access to information about people's private lives, which unfortunately, can be abused by companies, intelligence services or even identity thieves. The European Parliament has issued a report highlighting actions against cybercriminals, but also ensuring guarantees for fundamental rights and privacy for internet users.

EU citizens must be helped and encouraged to learn languages other than their own if they are to derive full economic, social and cultural benefit from freedom of movement, says a report adopted by the European Parliament. An alternative resolution was adopted with 335 votes in favour, 279 against and 69 abstentions replacing the original report from the Culture Committee.

The European Parliament adopted on March 25th 2009, the second legislative package for the Single European Sky (SES II), as a result of very fruitful discussions with the Czech Presidency. These measures will deliver safer, greener and more performing flights, with annual savings for airlines calculated around four billion euros by 2020. After EP's agreement, the Council should formalise the final adoption of the legislative package very soon.

The European Commission has published in the Official Journal of the European Union on March 26th 2009, its Communication on on the treatment of impaired assets in the Community banking sector. In this Communication, the Commission puts forward its recommendations for Member states, highlighting the different envisageable approaches to deal with impaired assets, specially by assets purchase or assets insurances schemes.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) are increasingly financing operations in the same geographical areas, including Eastern Europe, the Southern Caucasus, Russia, the Western Balkans, and soon, Turkey. In light of this, European Parliament calls for increased cooperation between the two institutions.

The Court of First Instance has confirmed OHIM's decision not to register the word “Budweiser” as a community trade mark, inter alia for beer, for the American brewer, Anheuser-Busch, as the commercial right to use such term for beer is already held in Germany and Austria by the Czech brewery, Budějovický Budvar.

In a report publisehd on March 25th, the European Commission gives an overview of Europe’s Telecom market as well as the state of competition in the 27 EU countries. According to that report, EU Telecom sector is doing well despite the economic crisis. The sector, worth about 3% of EU GDP, continued to grow in 2008 with revenues estimated at above €300 billion, up 1.3% compared to 2007 and outperforming the rest of the economy, which only grew by 1%.