natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Rigsrevisionen, som er en uafhængig institution under folketinget, har til opgave at foretage såvel regnskabsrevision som forvaltningsrevision.
The National Audit Office, an independent institution under the Danish Parliament, has the task of carrying out both accounting and management audits.
Den drog i 1995 den konklusion, at en væsentlig del af TV2's økonomiske problemer kunne henføres til, at stationen var etableret uden indskud af kapital [79].
It concluded in 1995 that a substantial proportion of TV2’s financial problems could be attributed to the station having been established without an injection of capital [79].
Rigsrevisionen anbefalede primært, at staten indskød ca. 530 mio. DKK i TV2 som egenkapital gennem en konvertering af etableringslånene.
The main recommendation made by the National Audit Office was that the State should inject approximately DKK 530 million of capital into TV2 by converting the start-up loans.
Det ville give TV2 en egenkapital på ca. 350 mio. DKK og en soliditetsgrad på omkring 50 %.
This would give TV2 capital of approximately DKK 350 million and a solvency ratio of around 50 %.
Den anbefalede soliditetsgrad på omkring 50 % svarede til soliditetsgraden i privatejede stationer som TV2 Norge og TV4 i Sverige.
The recommended solvency ratio of approximately 50 % was equivalent to that of privately owned undertakings such as TV2 Norge (Norway) and TV4 (Sweden).
Efter Rigsrevisionens beretning anmodede Statsrevisorerne — som er folketingsmedlemmer udpeget som ansvarlige for en kritisk revision af bl.a. statsvirksomheders regnskaber — finansministeren om en redegørelse vedrørende spørgsmålet om, hvorvidt TV2 skulle opbygge egenkapital.
Following this report, the State auditors — the members of the Danish Parliament appointed to be responsible for a critical audit of, among other things, the accounts of State-owned undertakings — asked the Ministry of Finance for its opinion on the question of whether TV2 should build up capital.
I sit svar fra august 1995 på Rigsrevisionens anbefaling af, at TV2 skulle have en egenkapital, udtalte finansministeren, at »såvel ved etablering af nye virksomheder som ved omdannelse af eksisterende statsvirksomheder må det være en forudsætning, at virksomheden sikres det nødvendige kapitalgrundlag. Men det må samtidig sikres, at staten ikke foretager et for stort kapitalindskud, da dette dels vil indebære en unødvendig udgift for staten og dels vil kunne give virksomheden en urimelig konkurrencefordel.
In August 1995, in response to the National Audit Office proposal that TV2 should be given a capital injection, the Ministry of Finance stated that ‘[b]oth when establishing new undertakings and when converting existing state-owned undertakings, the undertaking must have the necessary capital base. But at the same time the State must not make too large an injection of capital, firstly because this would signify an unnecessary expense for the State and secondly because it could give the undertaking an unfair competitive advantage. The undertaking must be neither under- nor over-capitalised’.
Det må således sikres, at virksomheden hverken under- eller overkapitaliseres.« Den danske stat fandt på grundlag heraf, at der skulle opbygges en egenkapital i TV2.
On this basis the Danish State considered that capital should be built up in TV2.
Men det blev besluttet, at staten ikke skulle skyde hele kapitalen ind på én gang.
However, it was decided that the State would not contribute the capital all at once.
skulle i stedet for selv oparbejde den nødvendige egenkapital via løbende overskud.
would instead itself build up the necessary capital through ongoing surpluses.
Fra 2001 skal den fri egenkapital til enhver tid udgøre mindst 200 mio. DKK ifølge seneste regnskab.
From 2001, the free capital at any one time was to be at least DKK 200 million, based on the latest accounts.
1997-bekendtgørelsen om en fri mindstekapital blev bekendtgjort i Lovtidende.
The 1997 executive order issued by the Minister setting the minimum free capital was published in the Danish Official Gazette (Lovtidende).
Desuden blev opbygningen af egenkapital i overensstemmelse med vedtægtskravene også særskilt omtalt i TV2's offentliggjorte årsregnskaber.
In addition, from 1998 onwards, the build-up of capital in accordance with the requirements of the Statutes was specifically mentioned in TV2’s published annual accounts.
Ifølge de danske myndigheder måtte en tilsidesættelse af mindstekapitalkravet i vedtægterne på 200 mio. DKK ventes at føre til, at TV2 blev sat under statens administration.
According to the Danish authorities, failure to observe with the minimum capital requirement of DKK 200 million under its Statutes would be expected to result in TV2 being placed under State administration.
Kommissionen finder, at det afgørende spørgsmål er, om og i hvilket omfang det kapitalgrundlag, der blev opnået gennem kompensationen, rent faktisk var nødvendigt for, at TV2 kunne varetage sin public service-opgave.
The Commission considers that the crucial issue is to determine if and to what extent the capital base attained through the compensation was indeed necessary for the performance of TV2’s public service mission.
I lyset af den ovenstående beskrivelse af forløbet og baggrunden for opbygningen af reserver i TV2 i form af et egenkapitalgrundlag og i lyset af Rettens dom finder Kommissionen, at det rent faktisk var nødvendigt at opbygge en reserve i TV2, for at TV2 kunne varetage sine public service-opgaver.
Having regard to the above description of the procedure and the reasons that led to the build-up of TV2’s reserves in the form of a capital base, and in the light of the Court’s judgment, the Commission considers that the build-up of a reserve was indeed necessary for TV2 to fulfil its public service mission.
Kommissionen må imidlertid også afklare, om det virkelig var nødvendigt og berettiget at oparbejde reserver i den størrelsesorden, dvs. om hele det kapitalgrundlag, der var opbygget ved udgangen af 2002, rent faktisk var nødvendigt for, at TV2 kunne varetage sine public service-opgaver.
However, the Commission wonders whether the entire amount of the reserves was really justified and necessary, i.e. whether the full amount of the capital base built up by the end of 2002 was really necessary for the performance of TV2’s public service mission.
Kommissionen finder, at størrelsen af det kapitalgrundlag, der kan anses for at være passende og nødvendigt for at sikre varetagelsen af en public service-opgave, afhænger af de faktiske og retlige omstændigheder i hver enkelt sag.
In the Commission’s view, the size of the capital base that could be considered proportionate and necessary to guarantee the provision of the public service depends on the facts and the legal framework of each individual case.
De oplysninger, Kommissionen råder over om TV2's egenkapitalgrundlag, er sammenfattet i nedenstående tabel:
The figures available to the Commission regarding TV2’s capital base are shown in the table below:
Bundet egenkapital (digitalisering)
Earmarked capital (digitisation)
Fri egenkapital
Free capital
Samlet egenkapital
Total capital
Passiver
Total liabilities
Soliditetsgrad [81]
Solvency ratio [81]
Pr. 31. december 2002 havde TV2 oparbejdet en egenkapital på 550,5 mio. DKK, inkl. 72 mio. DKK i bundet egenkapital (digitalisering), hvilket svarer til en soliditetsgrad på 34 %.
On 31 December 2002, TV2 had built up capital of DKK 550,5 million, including DKK 72 million of earmarked capital (digitisation), which corresponds to a solvency ratio of 34 %.
Ved udgangen af 2002 udgjorde den frie egenkapital 478,5 mio. DKK.
The amount of free capital at the end of 2002 was DKK 478,5 million.
Kommissionen bemærker først og fremmest, at en del af denne kapital ikke var fri egenkapital.
First the Commission notes that part of the capital was not free capital.
I 1997 blev der overført 167 mio. DKK til TV2 til dette formål.
In 1997, DKK 167 million was transferred to TV2 for this purpose.
Kommissionen finder, at dette beløb var nødvendigt for TV2's public service-behov.
The Commission therefore considers that this amount was necessary for TV2’s public service needs.
Den omstændighed, at de penge, der ikke var blevet investeret i digitalisering (en saldo på 72 mio. DKK) pr. 1. januar 2003 endeligt blev frigivet, ændrer intet ved denne konklusion, da beløbet i den undersøgte periode helt klart var øremærket i TV2's regnskaber som bundet kapital og kun kunne bruges til digitaliseringsformål, og som Retten statuerede i sin dom, kan den omstændighed, at TV2 i praksis ikke var nødt til at trække på en reserve, ikke medføre, at denne reserve måtte anses for uforholdsmæssig i forhold til TV2's public service-behov [83].
The fact that the funds that had not been invested in digitisation by 1 January 2003 (a balance of DKK 72 million) were ultimately released does not alter this conclusion because, during the period under investigation, these sums were clearly entered in TV2’s accounts as earmarked capital that could only be used for the purpose of digitisation and, as the Court stated in its judgment, the fact that TV2 did not in practice have to draw on a reserve does not support the inference that this reserve had to be regarded as disproportionate to the funding needs of providing the public service [83].
Det bemærkes desuden, at TV2's egenkapital pr. 31. december 1994 (dvs. i begyndelsen af den periode, denne afgørelse omfatter) var negativ (tæt ved -156 mio. DKK), og at TV2 i 1995 og 1996 havde en negativ soliditetsgrad og en negativ egenkapital, hvilket er forklaringen på, at den samlede egenkapital ved udgangen af 2002 var lavere end den modtagne kompensation.
It should also be noted that at 31 December 1994 (at the start of the period covered by the present decision) TV2’s capital was negative (minus almost DKK 156 million) and that in 1995 and 1996, TV2 had a negative solvency ratio and negative capital, which explains why the total capital at the end of 2002 was lower than the compensation received.
Det var først ved udgangen af 2000, at TV2 havde oparbejdet en fri egenkapital, der lå over mindstebeløbet på de 200 mio. DKK.
It was only at the end of 2000 that TV2’s free capital rose above the required minimum threshold of DKK 200 million.
F.eks. havde TV2 en lavere soliditetsgrad end TV2 Norge (36 %) og en betydeligt lavere soliditetsgrad end TV4 (Sverige), hvis solidetetsgrad på 65 % var næsten det dobbelte af TV2's.
For instance, TV2’s solvency ratio was lower than that of TV2 Norge (36 %) and considerably lower than that of TV4 (Sweden), whose solvency ratio was 65 %, almost twice that of TV2.
Ifølge udtalelsen var TV2's soliditetsgrad lavere end de andre sammenlignelige stationers og kunne derfor ikke anses for at være for høj.
According to the opinion, TV2’s solvency ratio was below that of its peers and therefore could not be considered excessive.
Desuden blev der peget på, at der ikke var nogen grund til at tro, at de sammenlignelige stationers kapitalstruktur ikke var optimeret.
The opinion also pointed out that there was no reason to believe that the capital structure of those comparable broadcasters was not optimised.
PricewaterhouseCoopers anførte desuden, at en soliditetsgrad på under 30 % over tid ville være usædvanlig og gøre stationen sårbar over for indtægtsudsving.
PricewaterhouseCoopers also indicated that a solvency ratio of less than 30 % over time would be unusual and would render the company vulnerable to income fluctuations.
Denne sammenligning med andre aktører bør fortolkes med varsomhed, da disse aktører ikke udfører samme public service-virksomhed som TV2, ikke er finansieret på samme måde og ikke har samme retlige status.
The comparison with other operators should be interpreted with caution since they do not perform the same public service tasks as TV2, are not financed in the same way, and do not have the same legal status.
Men udtalelsen giver dog en indikation, som kan inddrages i vurderingen ved siden af andre elementer.
Nevertheless, the opinion gives some indication and can be taken into account alongside other elements.
Kommissionen bemærker i den forbindelse, at de danske myndigheder fremlagde oplysninger, der viser, at de i den sidste del af undersøgelsesperioden havde planer om at omdanne TV2 til et aktieselskab og privatisere det.
In this connection the Commission notes that the Danish authorities submitted information showing that, during the last part of the period under investigation, they planned to convert TV2 into a public limited company and privatise it.
Som led i processen med omdannelsen af TV2 til et aktieselskab blev det også analyseret, hvordan tilførslen af licensmidler kunne udfases, eftersom det var de danske myndigheders intention, at licensfinansieringen skulle ophøre efter privatiseringen af TV2.
As part of the conversion process, an analysis was also made of how the licence fee funding could be phased out, as the Danish authorities intended to abolish funding via licence fees after TV2’s privatisation.
Med henblik herpå indgik den danske regering i juni 2002 en aftale med flertallet i folketinget om en gennemgribende liberalisering af den danske mediepolitik.
To this end, in June 2002 the Danish government entered into an agreement with a majority in Parliament on a thorough liberalisation of Danish media policy.
Ifølge denne aftale skulle omdannelsen af TV2 ske med en snarest mulig privatisering for øje.
Under the agreement, TV2 was to be converted with a view to privatisation as soon as possible.
Der blev foretaget en analyse af det økonomiske grundlag for omdannelsen af TV2 til et aktieselskab.
An analysis was made of the financial basis for converting TV2 into a limited company.
Kulturministeren udpegede i sommeren 2002 en styregruppe bestående af repræsentanter for kulturministeriet og finansministeriet samt kammeradvokaten, som skulle afklare det økonomiske grundlag for en privatisering af TV2 og omdannelse af TV2 til et aktieselskab.
The Minister of Culture appointed a steering group in the summer of 2002 with representatives from the Culture Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Attorney General (Kammeradvokat) in order to clarify the economic basis for privatising TV2 and converting it into a limited company.
Til støtte herfor hyrede styregruppen et revisionsfirma og en økonomisk konsulent til bl.a. at beregne størrelsen af den egenkapital, TV2 ville få brug for.
To support its work, the steering group engaged an auditing firm and a financial advisor in order, for example, to calculate the level of capital needed by TV2.
Revisionsfirmaet konkluderede, at TV2 måtte have en egenkapital på 640 mio. DKK.
The auditing firm concluded that TV2’s capital should be set at DKK 640 million.
TV2's omdannelse til et aktieselskab og fastlæggelsen af dets egenkapital blev godkendt af folketingets Finansudvalg.
The Danish Parliament’s Finance Committee approved the conversion of TV2 into a limited company and the setting of its capital.
I 2005 blev privatiseringen udskudt, men efter 2004 fik TV2 ikke længere tilført licensmidler.
In 2005, privatisation was postponed but TV2 no longer received licence fees after 2004.
På grundlag af det ovenstående finder Kommissionen, at den omstændighed, at de danske myndigheder i den sidste del af undersøgelsesperioden allerede planlagde at ændre især TV2's retlige status med det behov for et kapitalgrundlag, som dette indebærer, er et blandt andre elementer, der må tages med i betragtning i Kommissionens vurdering af reservernes forenelighed.
In view of the foregoing, the Commission considers that one of the factors it must take into account in assessing the compatibility of the reserves is the fact that during the last part of the period under investigation the Danish authorities already planned to change TV2’s legal status, which implies the need for a capital base.
I overensstemmelse med sin beslutningspraksis stiller Kommissionen sig principielt positivt over for, at statsvirksomheder, der konkurrerer med private virksomheder, omdannes til aktieselskaber, da det kan være med til at mindske konkurrencefordrejninger ved at erstatte ubegrænsede statslige fordele med en begrænset egenkapital og ved at skabe en klar sondring mellem statens rolle som offentlig myndighed og dens rolle som investor, der forlanger et afkast af sin investering.
In its decisions, the Commission’s practice is to look favourably in principle on schemes to convert State entities that compete with commercial enterprises into limited company form, since doing so may reduce distortions of competition by replacing unlimited State advantages with a limited amount of capital and by creating a clear distinction between the role of the State as a public authority and its role as an entrepreneur seeking a return on its investment.
Blandt de andre elementer, der bør tages i betragtning, finder Kommissionen endvidere, at størrelsen af TV2's reserver bør ses i lyset af udsvingene i indtægterne på reklamemarkederne.
In addition, among the other factors to be taken into account, the Commission considers that the level of TV2’s reserves should be viewed in the light of fluctuations in revenue from the advertising market.
var rent faktisk sårbar over for de udsving i indtægterne, som er et uundgåeligt aspekt ved reklamemarkedet.
was indeed vulnerable to the revenue fluctuations that are an inevitable aspect of the advertising market.
I et enkelt år, 1998-1999, oplevede TV2 f.eks. et fald i reklameindtægterne på omkring 104 mio. DKK.
For example, in one year (1998 to 1999) TV2 experienced a drop in advertising revenue of approximately DKK 104 million.
Ifølge de danske myndigheder kan TV2 kun være i stand til at imødegå så store indtægtsnedgange ved at have en meget betragtelig fri egenkapital, eftersom licensmidlerne var fastlagt på forhånd for flere år.
According to the Danish authorities, the only way for TV2 to be able to cope with falls of this size was by having a very considerable amount of free capital, as licence fee revenue was fixed in advance for several years.
Selv om TV2 var mindre afhængig af reklameindtægter end TV2 Norge og TV4, som ikke får tilført licensmidler, udgjorde reklameindtægterne i den undersøgte periode ikke desto mindre en vigtig kilde til finansiering af TV2's aktiviteter.
Even though TV2 was less dependent on advertising revenue than TV2 Norge and TV4, which do not receive licence fees, funding via advertising nevertheless constituted an important source of financing for TV2’s operations during the period in question.
Kommissionen har i den forbindelse noteret sig, at Retten i sin dom [84] pointerede, at »den omstændighed, at TV2 ikke havde behov for at trække på sine reserver i 1999, medfører ikke, at disse midler skal anses for uforholdsmæssige i forhold til selskabets public service-behov. Det ligger i selve karakteren af en reserve opbygget for at afværge en risiko, at den ikke nødvendigvis skal anvendes.«
In this respect, the Commission takes note that the Court made it clear in its judgment [84] that ‘[t]he fact that TV2 did not have to draw on its reserves in 1999 does not support the inference that those reserves had to be regarded as disproportionate to the funding needs of providing the public service. It is in the very nature of a reserve which is built up to deal with an uncertainty that it does not necessarily have to be used.’
Kommissionen er enig med de danske myndigheder i, at der ved vurderingen af TV2's behov også må tages hensyn til, at TV2 er udsat for betydelige likviditetsudsving henover året og mellem forskellige år, da de store sportsbegivenheder som f.eks. OL kun finder sted med flerårige mellemrum, og programrettighederne typisk udbydes under flerårige kontrakter.
The Commission agrees with the Danish authorities that in assessing TV2’s needs it must also take account of the fact that TV2 experiences substantial fluctuations in liquidity both in the course of a single year and from one year to the next, since major sports events such as the Olympic Games only take place at intervals of several years and programme rights are typically offered under multi-year contracts.
eks. fremgår det af årsberetningen for 1995 [85], at overskuddet for 1995 blev fremført til 1996 til dækning af det forventede underskud i det år, hvor der var særligt store udgifter i forbindelse med OL og med EM i fodbold.
For example, it can be seen from the annual report for 1995 [85] that the surplus for 1995 was carried forward to 1996 to cover the expected deficit for that year, when there was particularly high expenditure in connection with the Olympics and the European Football Championships.
Det bemærkes desuden, at TV2 i undersøgelsesperioden var afskåret fra sædvanlig lånefinansiering.
In addition, it should also be noted that during the period under investigation, TV2 was precluded from using ordinary loan financing.
havde mulighed for investeringslån på op til 4 % af indtægterne ifølge det seneste regnskab.
Investment loans were permitted for up to 4 % of revenue, based on the most recent accounts.
Men ud over almindelige driftskreditter var TV2 afskåret fra alle andre former for lån, kautions- og finansielle leasingforpligtelser.
was prohibited from taking out any other forms of loans, guarantees, or finance lease obligations, apart from general operating credit.
På grund af TV2's begrænsede muligheder for lånefinansiering måtte selskabets likviditetsbehov i princippet dækkes via driften.
TV2’s limited opportunities for loan financing meant that in principle its liquidity needs had to be covered by liquidity from operations.
Endelig fremgår egenkapitalens størrelse af de offentliggjorte regnskaber.
Finally, the level of capital is shown in the published accounts.
I den undersøgte periode blev TV2's regnskaber revideret af Rigsrevisionen.
During the period in question, the National Audit Office audited TV2’s accounts.
Der var tale om såvel økonomisk revision som forvaltningsrevision, selv om Rigsrevisionen ikke havde nogen kompetence til at forhindre overkompensering for TV2's public service-omkostningern.
The audits included both financial and management audits, although the National Audit Office had no power to prevent overcompensation of the public service costs of TV2.
Men som Retten statuerede i sin dom [86], kan den omstændighed, at Rigsrevisionen ikke havde nogen beføjelse til at forhindre en overkompensering, ikke føre til den konklusion, at der ikke blev ført kontrol fra de danske myndigheders side.
As the Court held in its judgment [86], the fact that this auditing body did not have any power to prevent overcompensation does not permit the conclusion that the Danish authorities did not carry out checks.
Tværtimod oplyste de danske myndigheder, at hvis Rigsrevisionen havde fundet kapitalgrundlaget for stort, kunne det f.eks. have resulteret i en nedsættelse af licensmidlerne til TV2 i den næste medieaftale.
On the contrary, the Danish authorities indicated that, had the National Audit Office drawn the conclusion that the capital base was too large, this might, for example, have resulted in licence-fee resources payable to TV2 being reduced in the next media agreement.
På grundlag af samtlige ovenstående elementer anskuet i deres helhed finder Kommissionen med hensyn til den første del af proportionalitetsvurderingen i denne ganske særlige sag og i lyset af Amsterdamprotokollen og Rettens dom, at den kapital, der var opbygget ved udgangen af 2002 (550 mio. DKK), var nødvendig for TV2's opfyldelse af sine public service-forpligtelser.
In view of all the foregoing considerations taken as a whole, the Commission considers, as regards the first part of the proportionality assessment, that in this specific case, having regard to the Amsterdam Protocol and the Court’s judgment, the amount of capital accumulated at the end of 2002 (i.e. DKK 550 million) was necessary for TV2 to fulfil its public service mission.
Det beløb på 628 mio. DKK, som TV2 fik tilført til dette formål, opfyldte derfor proportionalitets- og nødvendighedskriteriet på grundlag af artikel 106, stk. 2, i TEUF.
The sum of DKK 628 million received for that purpose therefore satisfied the criteria of proportionality and necessity under Article 106(2) TFEU.