CELEX: C2000/285/26
Language: en
Date: 2000-10-07 00:00:00
Title: Case T-185/00: Action brought on 13 July 2000 by Métropole Télévision (M6) against the Commission of the European Communities

C 285/14               EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                    7.10.2000
Action brought on 13 July 2000 by Métropole Télévision                   active effect to the contested decision. In short, the Com-
(M6) against the Commission of the European Communi-                     mission had exempted the system for the sub-licensing of
                               ties                                      Eurovision rights, whereas that system is by nature discriminat-
                                                                         ory. Lastly, the applicant maintains that, by adopting the
                                                                         contested decision, the Commission has committed a misuse
                         (Case T-185/00)                                 of powers.
                         (2000/C 285/26)
                                                                         (1) OJ 2000 L 151, p. 18.
                   (Language of the case: French)
An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 13 July 2000 by Métropole Télé-
vision (M6), established at Neuilly/Seine (France), represented
by Didier Théophile, of the Paris Bar.
                                                                         Action brought on 14 July 2000 by Società Conserve
                                                                         Italia Soc. Coop. a.r.l. against the Commission of the
                                                                                             European Communities
The applicant claims that the Court should:
—     annul all the provisions of Commission Decision                                             (Case T-186/00)
      2000/400/EC dated 10 May 2000 (Case IV/32.150 Euro-
      vision);
                                                                                                  (2000/C 285/27)
—     order the Commission to pay all the costs.
                                                                                            (Language of the case: Italian)
Pleas in law and principal arguments
                                                                         An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
                                                                         ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
                                                                         European Communities on 14 July 2000 by Società Conserve
The applicant is contesting the Commission’s decision of
                                                                         Italia Soc. Coop. a.r.l., established at S. Lazzaro di Savena,
10 May 2000 declaring Article 81(1) EC and Article 53(1) of
                                                                         represented by Marina Averani, Andrea Pisaneschi and Stefano
the EEA Agreement to be inapplicable to certain agreements
                                                                         Zunarelli, lawyers, with an address for service in Luxembourg
of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) governing the
                                                                         at the Chambers of Charles Turk, 13 B Avenue Guillaume.
acquisition of television rights to sporting events, the exchange
of sports programmes within the framework of Eurovision
and access to Eurovision sports rights for third parties (1). That       The applicant claims that the Court should:
decision was adopted as a result of the judgment of the Court
of First Instance of 11 July 1996 in Joined Cases T-528/93,
T-542/93, T-543/93 and T-546/93 Métropole Télévision and                 —     annul, pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 230
Others v Commission, by which the Court of First Instance                      EC, the Commission’s decision of 3 May 2000 (C (2000)
annulled the Commission’s exemption decision of 11 June                        1099);
1993.
                                                                         —     order the Commission to pay the costs.
The applicant complains, first of all, that the Commission is
asserting, contrary to what the Court of First Instance held in
its aforementioned judgment, that its decision dated 11 June             Pleas in law and principal arguments
1993 did not include the criteria for EBU membership. On the
basis of that postulation, the new criteria adopted by the EBU
following delivery of the judgment of the Court of First                 The present action is directed against the Commission’s
Instance have been wrongly excluded from the scope of the                decision of 3 May 2000 (C (2000) 1099), notified on 9 May
decision.                                                                2000, which ‘withdraws the grant of aid by EAGGF, Guidance
                                                                         Section, for project No 9 (beneficiary: Massalombarda
                                                                         Colombani S.p.A.) in the context of operational programme
In addition, the applicant maintains that the criteria for EBU           No 91.C.T.I.T.01 approved by Commission Decision
membership are manifestly anti-competitive. It goes on to                No C(91)2255/6 of 28.10.1991, and which reduces the
complain that the Commission has unlawfully given retro-                 amount payable in respect of that operational programme’.