European Union News - 2009

The European Commission sent a Statement of Objections (SO) to Microsoft on 15th January 2009. The SO outlines the Commission’s preliminary view that Microsoft’s tying of its web browser Internet Explorer to its dominant client PC operating system Windows infringes the EC Treaty rules on abuse of a dominant position (Article 82).
In the SO, the Commission sets out evidence and outlines its preliminary conclusion that Microsoft’s tying of Internet Explorer to the Windows operating system harms competition between web browsers, undermines product innovation and ultimately reduces consumer choice.

This year, for the first time, 185 cities from all 27 EU Member States, will benefit from the "Urban Atlas", which has been produced by the European Commission and Member States with the support of European space technology.  Whether big or small, European cities need reliable and comparable urban planning information for safe, sustainable and prosperous development, and Europe's “eye in the sky” will provide them with tools for smart development.

The European Commission has agreed  on new rules for the use of data link in air traffic management (ATM) systems in Europe. Data link technology revolutionizes communications between air traffic controllers and pilots through supplementing voice communications with an air-ground data link.

Prior notification of a concentration procedure between Rabobank and polish bank Bank Gospodarki Żywnościowe, was published on January 16th in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The Official Journal of the European Union, OJEU has published on January, 16th 2009 the Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council of January 14th, appointing Mr. Peter Hustinx as the new European Data Protection Supervisor.

The European Parliament has approved the revision of the regulations to include biometric data such as fingerprints or facial patterns, in passports issued in the European Union. The new law sets the minimum age of 12 years to take fingerprints, but grants a period of 4 years to countries where the age is lower. Moreover, in all Member States children will be holders of their own passports and will no longer appear in their parents. This is sought to combat the illicit trafficking of minors.

The Official Journal of the European Union has published on January, 15th 2009 the Communication from the Commission on “The recapitalisation of financial institutions in the current financial crisis: limitation of aid to the minimum necessary and safeguards against undue distortions of competition”, which presents some guidelines on the new regimes for recapitalization and opens the possibility to adapt the existing ones.

The Council adopted on January, 12th 2009, the common positions and the statements on the package of legislative measures concerning the internal energy market, aiming to supplement the existing rules to ensure that the internal market operates smoothly for all consumers and to enable the EU to achieve a more secure, competitive and sustainable energy supply.

The Official Journal of the European Union, OJEU, has published on January 15th, the Decision adopted by the Commission on December 22nd 2008 on the request from the United Kingdom to accept Regulation (EC) Nº 593/2008 of the European Parliament and the Council on the law applicable to contractual obligations (Rome I).

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF) have committed to increasing their cooperation and coordination in providing finance for the development of CAF's shareholder countries. EIB Vice-President, Carlos Costa, and CAF Executive President, L. Enrique García, signed the corresponding Joint Statement in Luxembourg this week.

The Official Journal of the European Union has publisehd on january, 14th 2009, the Commission Recommendation of December, 19th 2008 on common guidelines for the national sides and the issuance of euro coins intended for circulation. These recommendations contain some common rules which must be followed by the participating Member States as regards issuing and changes to the national side of the euro coins.

Two and a half years after its launch, the “.eu” top-level internet domain confirms its success with the registration of the third million domain, made by a German citizen on January, 11th 2009. These figures rank “.eu” as the fourth most popular internet domain among European country domains and the ninth worldwide.