European Union News - Internal Market

In the context of economic crisis, EU ministers for transport have met in Brussels to analyze some strategies for the recovery of the automotive sector in Europe.

The European Commission has approved under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed acquisition of the internet search and search advertising businesses of Yahoo! Inc. by Microsoft. With this merger, Microsoft aims to be a bigger competitor in search advertising for Google, and to become a real alternative to it.

A number of MEPs urged Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier to come up with common rules to regulate cross border online gambling in Europe. In a debate on 11 February many MEPs were concerned about the effects of gambling on minors, addiction and money laundering.

Small firms have been hard hit by the economic crisis, and so must be given incentives and support, including easier access to credit, help with innovation, tax breaks and less red tape, MEPs on Parliament's Special Committee on the Financial, Economic and Social Crisis (CRIS), and experts agreed at a workshop on Monday.

The European Commission has cleared the proposed acquisition of German internet provider Hansenet Telekommunikation GmbH of Germany by Telefónica Deutschland GmbH, also of Germany and an indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of Telefónica S.A. of Spain.

The European Commission has given its green light for the public financing from France and Spain to the Fres Mos project. It will link the French port of Nantes-Saint Nazaire with the Spanish port of Gijon, and will be operated by GLD Atlantique. This Motorways of the Sea project will also receive an EU grant in the framework of the 2009 Marco Polo II call for proposals

The European Commission has published in the Official Journal of the European Union of 27 January 2010 the prior notification of concentration between Microsoft and Yahoo Search Business

The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed acquisition of the German cable network operator Unitymedia GmbH by Liberty Global Europe Holding B.V. (LGE) of The Netherlands. The Commission concluded that the concentration would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area (EEA) or any substantial part of it.

The European Commission has approved 13 programmes in 11 Member States to promote milk and milk products in the European Union. The total budget of the programmes, running for a period of three years, is € 35.8 million of which the EU contributes € 17.9 million.

The European Commission has published in the Official Journal of the European Union of 16 January 2010 the prior notification of concentration between Orange and T-Mobile in the UK.