ARE COMPATIBLE WITH THE COMPETITION RULES OF THE TREATY .
THE THIRD QUESTION INQUIRES WHETHER ARTICLES 86 AND 90 OF THE TREATY TAKEN TOGETHER SHOULD BE INTERPRETED AS MEANING THAT AN UNDERTAKING REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 90 ( 1 ) IS PROHIBITED FROM ACQUIRING A DOMINANT POSITION, EVEN AS A RESULT OF AN ACT OF THE NATIONAL AUTHORITIES, WHEN THE EFFECT IS TO ELIMINATE ALL FORMS OF COMPETITION IN THE FIELD IN WHICH IT OPERATES OVER THE WHOLE TERRITORIAL AREA OF THE MEMBER STATE .
IF THE ANSWER TO THE THIRD QUESTION IS IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, THE FOURTH QUESTION ENQUIRES WHETHER A LIMITED COMPANY ON WHICH A MEMBER STATE HAS CONFERRED BY LAW THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO CARRY OUT TELEVISION BROADCASTS OF ALL KINDS INCLUDING THOSE TRANSMITTED BY CABLE, AND THOSE FOR COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING PURPOSES, HOLDS A DOMINANT POSITION WHICH IS INCOMPATIBLE WITH ARTICLE 86, OR AT LEAST ABUSES ITS DOMINANT POSITION BY ENGAGING IN CERTAIN PRACTICES TENDING TO ELIMINATE COMPETITION AND WHICH ARE PARTICULARIZED BY THE NATIONAL COURT .
IF THIS QUESTION IS ANSWERED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, THE FIFTH QUESTION ASKS WHETHER THE PROHIBITIONS REFERRED TO IN THE PREVIOUS QUESTIONS HAVE A DIRECT EFFECT AND CONFER RIGHTS ON INDIVIDUALS WHICH THE NATIONAL COURTS MUST SAFEGUARD .
13 THE ITALIAN AND GERMAN GOVERNMENTS HAVE SUGGESTED THAT SINCE TELEVISION UNDERTAKINGS FULFIL A TASK WHICH CONCERNS THE PUBLIC AND IS OF A CULTURAL AND INFORMATIVE NATURE, THEY ARE NOT 'UNDERTAKINGS' WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE TREATY .
AT LEAST ( IT IS ARGUED ) THEY ARE ENTRUSTED WITH A SERVICE OF GENERAL ECONOMIC INTEREST SO THAT THEY ARE SUBJECT TO THE RULES CONTAINED IN THE TREATY AND IN PARTICULAR TO THE RULES ON COMPETITION ONLY INSOFAR AS THE APPLICATION OF SUCH RULES DOES NOT OBSTRUCT THE PERFORMANCE, IN LAW OR IN FACT, OF THE PARTICULAR TASKS ASSIGNED TO THEM .
14 ARTICLE 90 ( 1 ) PERMITS MEMBER STATES INTER ALIA TO GRANT SPECIAL OR EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS TO UNDERTAKINGS .
NOTHING IN THE TREATY PREVENTS MEMBER STATES, FOR CONSIDERATIONS OF PUBLIC INTEREST, OF A NON-ECONOMIC NATURE, FROM REMOVING RADIO AND TELEVISION TRANSMISSIONS, INCLUDING CABLE TRANSMISSIONS, FROM THE FIELD OF COMPETITION BY CONFERRING ON ONE OR MORE ESTABLISHMENTS AN EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO CONDUCT THEM .
HOWEVER, FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR TASKS THESE ESTABLISHMENTS REMAIN SUBJECT TO THE PROHIBITIONS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION AND, TO THE EXTENT THAT THIS PERFORMANCE COMPRISES ACTIVITIES OF AN ECONOMIC NATURE, FALL UNDER THE PROVISIONS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 90 RELATING TO PUBLIC UNDERTAKINGS AND UNDERTAKINGS TO WHICH MEMBER STATES GRANT SPECIAL OR EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS .
THE INTERPRETATION OF ARTICLES 86 AND 90 TAKEN TOGETHER LEADS TO THE CONCLUSION THAT THE FACT THAT AN UNDERTAKING TO WHICH A MEMBER STATE GRANTS EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS HAS A MONOPOLY IS NOT AS SUCH INCOMPATIBLE WITH ARTICLE 86 .
IT IS THEREFORE THE SAME AS REGARDS AN XTENSION OF EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FOLLOWING A NEW INTERVENTION BY THIS STATE .
15 MOREOVER, IF CERTAIN MEMBER STATES TREAT UNDERTAKINGS ENTRUSTED WITH THE OPERATION