natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Med hensyn til fastsættelsen af disse provisionssatser må det understreges, at formanden for UIC's distributionskomité ved brev af 6. marts 1990 over for EF-Kommissionen har anført, at »distributionskomitéen havde foreslået og opnået at provisionen dl rejsebureauerne fra 1. januar 1990 blev forhøjet til 10 %.
With regard to the setting of these rates of commission, the Chairman of the UIC Distribution Committee, in reply to a request for information, told the Commission by letter dated 6 March 1990 that 'the Distribution Committee got the rate of commission granted to agencies increased to 10 % as from 1 January 1990.
Undtagelse : de italienske jernbaner benytter fortsat den hidtidige sats på 9 %, de tunesiske jernbaner og Compagnie Transmediterranea yder 8 %.«
Exception : the Italian Railways kept the former rate of 9 %, the Tunisian Railways and the Compagnie Maritime Transmediterranea 8 %'.
I ovennævnte bilag 4 angives for hver jernbane den provisionssats, der anvendes over for rejsebureauer med autorisation fra en udenlandsk jernbane og over for de andre jernbaner.
The abovementioned Appendix 4 stipulates, for each railway, the rate of commission granted to the travel agencies accredited by a foreign railway and the rate granted Co che ocher railways.
Formanden for UIC's distributionskomité oplyste desuden, at »i afventning af, at cirkulære 130 bliver genoptrykt har jernbanerne (") fået tilsendt en skrivelse, hvoraf kopi medfølger.·
The Chairman of the UIC Distribution Committee also states that 'pending the reprint of leaflet 130, the railways (") have received the letter a copy of which is attached'.
Ovennævnte skrivelse blev af formanden for UIC's distributionskomité udsendt til jernbanerne den 24. januar 1990.
The abovementioned letter was sent to the railways by the Chairman of the UIC Distribution Committee on 24 January 1990.
0 Udtrykket anvendt i betydningen »jernbanevirksomhed·
In Che case of all che railways, che race of commission is granced subject to reciprocity by the other railways.
Pligt til at udstede og sælge billetter til de i tarif ferne angivne officielle priser
The obligation to draw up and sell tickets at the official fares indicated in the tariffs
Endelig anfører DSB i brev af 30. maj 1990 til Kommissionen herom, at rejsebureauerne har ret til at afstå en del af deres provision, men kun til deres eventuelle underagenter.
Similarly, the Greek Railways state, in a letter dated 3 April 1990 sent to the Commission, that 'travel agencies appointed by the Greek Railways may not pass on to their customers part of their commis­sion, so as to prevent problems of unfair competi­tion vis­à­vis the railways'.
I artikel 4 i UIC's standardoverenskomst med rejse bureauerne hedder det med hensyn til bureauets forpligtelser bla. :
Article 4 of the standard agreement on the appoint­ment of agencies drawn up by the UIC states with regard to the agencies' obligations :
Forbud mod at favorisere portformer
Ban on promoting competing means of transport
»Rejsebureauet skal udstede og sælge billetterne til de officielle priser, der er angivet i tarifferne, og må ikke opkræve gebyr for udstedelse af billetter.«
The agency is required to draw up and sell che ticketa at the official fares indicated in the tariffs and to refrain from charging for the drawing­up of the tickets issued' (unofficial version translated from the French).
I den .kontrakt,-der benyttes af British Railway Board, fastsættes det således i artikel 2(11) : »agenten må kun sælge billetter til de af British Railway Board fastsatte priser, og alle billetter skal dateres ved salget.«
Thus, clause 2 (ii) of the agreement used by the British Railways Board states that 'the Agent shall not sell tickets at any price other than the price fixed by the Board and shall ensure that all tickecs are daced prior Co issue'.
Herom hedder det i artikel 4 i UIC's standard overenskomst, at »rejsebureauet i sine reklamer, tilbud og kunderådgivning ikke må favorisere konkurrerende transportformer i forhold til jernba netransport og de i stk. 1 omhandlede transportformer« (stk. 1 omhandler de andre transportformer, som jernbanerne driver enten alene eller sammen med andre).
Article 1 of the standard agreement drawn up by the UIC stipulates in this respect that 'the Agency is required not to favour, whether by its advertising, by ics proposals or by its advice to the public, means of transport competing with the railways and with the other means of transport referred to in paragraph Γ (unofficial version CranslaCed from che French) (paragraph 1 refers Co the other means of transport operated either by the railways themselves or in association therewith).
SNCB's kontrakt fastsætter i artikel 4.5, at »rejsebureauet skal sælge de billettér, det har fået overdraget at sælge, i overensstemmelse med de af SNCB angivne forskrifter og til de angivne priser.«
Article 4.5 of the agreemenc used by the SNCB states chae 'ehe agency shall ensure chac che tickets entrusted Co ic are sold in accordance wich che SNCB's regulacions and ac Che prices nocified co ic'.
A. Konkurrencereglerne
A. Applicability of the competition rules
UIC's repræsentanter har gjort gældende, at konkurrencereglerne ikke finder anvendelse i denne sag, hovedsagelig af følgende tre grunde :
According to the representatives of the UIC the competition rules are not applicable in this instance, for three main reasons :
(36) de autoriserede rejsebureauer bærer ingen risiko for opfyldelsen af transportaftalen
(36) the appointed agents do not assume the risks connected with the performance of the trans­port contract,
Nogle jernbaner har derudover indføjet en række supplerende bestemmelser om provisioner til rejse bureauerne.
Some railway companies supplement these provi­sions by specific provisions relating to che commis­sions granced co agencies.
som udbydere af internationale transportydelser er jernbanerne ikke konkurrenter, men derimod samarbejdspartnere
the railway companies are not in a competitive situation, but cooperate in providing interna­tional services,
I de britiske jernbaners kontrakt hedder det således i artikel 3, at »agenten skal selv beholde hele provi sionen fra British Rail og må ikke afstå nogen del heraf til nogen ved at yde rabatter eller på anden vis.«
Clause 3 of Che agreemenc used by che Bricish Rail­ways Board states that 'the Agent shall retain the full amount of the commission allowed by the Board and shall not pass on such commission or agents cannot go beyond merely negotiating and concluding contracts on behalf of the rail­ways and cannot pass on part of their commis­sion.
Spørgsmålet om konkurrencereglerne finder anvendelse i forholdet mellem rejsebureauer og deres kommittenter, blev også rejst i WR/Sociale Dienst-sagen (').
The question of the applicability of the competi­tion rules to relations between travel agencs and their principals arose in Case 311/85 WR ν Sociale Dienst (')·
denne sag at betragte som hjælpeorganer på trans portområdet og hvad angår procedureregler skulle det derfor være Rådets forordning (EØF) nr. 1017/68 af 19. juli 1968 om anvendelse af konkur renceregler for transport med jernbane, ad landeveje og sejlbare vandveje (*), ændret ved akten vedrørende Grækenlands tiltrædelse, der fandt anvendelse.
Regulation No 17. According to the UIC, as far as this case is concerned travel agencs are providers of services ancillary eo Cransport and, consequently, the procedural rules applicable are Council Regula­tion (EEC) No 1017/68 of 19 July 1968 applying rules of competition to transport by rail, road and inland waterway (2), as amended by che AcC of Accession of Che Hellenic Republic.
Den belgiske regering havde gjort gældende, at EØF-Traktatens artikel 85, stk. 1, ikke fandt anvendelse, idet forholdet mellem rejsebureauer og rejsearrangører var et mandat/mandater-forhold, og at rejsebureauer derfor måtte betragtes som et hjælpeorgan for rejsearrangøren.
The Belgian Government had disputed the applica­bility of Arcicle 85 of che EEC Treaty, arguing that the relationship becween a Cour operator and a travel agent was one of principal and agent and that a travel agent had therefore to be regarded as an auxiliary organ of the tour operator.
I artikel 1 i Rådets forordning (EØF) 1017/68 hedder det
Article 1 of Regulation (EEC) No 1017/68 provides as follows :
•En rejseagent af den type, som den nationale ret omtaler, må tværtimod anses som en uafhængig mellemmand, der udøver en selvstændig virksomhed med salg af tjenesteydelser.
On this point, the Court of Justice held that 'a travel agent of the kind referred to by the national court must be regarded as an independent agent who provides services on an entirely independent basis.
På sin side sælger agenten nemlig rejser arrangeret af et meget stort antal rejsearrangører, mens rejsearrangøren på sin side sælger sine rejser til et stort antal agenter.
He sells travel organized by a large number of different tour operators and a tour operator sells travel through a very large number of agenta.
En sådan rejseagent kan ikke, som den belgiske regering vil antage, betegnes som et hjælpeorgan, der er integreret i denne eller hin rejsearrangørs virksomhed.«
Contrary to the Belgian Government's submissions, a travel agent cannot be treated as an auxiliary organ forming an integral part of a tour operator's undertaking'.
»For så vidt angår transport med jernbane, ad landeveje og sejlbare vandveje finder bestemmelserne i denne forordning anvendelse på aftaler, vedtagelser og samordnet praksis, som har til formål eller følge at fastsætte befordringspriser og -vilkår, begrænsning af eller kontrol med udbuddet af transportydelser, opdeling af transportmarkederne, anvendelse af tekniske forbedringer eller teknisk samarbejde, fælles finansiering eller erhvervelse af transportmateriel eller -tilbehør, som er umiddelbart forbundet med transportydelse, for så vidt som dette er nødvendigt for den fælles drift af en sammenslutning af virksomheder inden for landevejs- og vandvejstrafikken således som defineret i artikel 4, samt på misbrug af en dominerende stilling på transportmarkedet.
The provisions of this Regulation shall, in the field of transport by rail, road and inland waterway, apply both to all agreemencs, decisions and concerted practices which have as Cheir objecc or effecc Che fixing of transport rates and conditions, the limitación or control of che supply of Cransport, Che sharing of Cransport markets, Che applicacion of technical improvements or technical cooperation, or the joint financing or acquisition of transport equipment or supplies where such operations are directly related to the provision of transport services and are necessary for the joint operation of services by grouping within the meaning of Article 4 of road or inland waterway transport underta­kings, and to the abuse of a dominant position on the transport market.
Disse bestemmelser gælder også virksomhed udøvet af støtteerhvervene på transportområdet, når denne virksomhed har det ovenfor anførte formål eller de ovenfor anførte virkninger.·
These provisions shall apply also to operations of providers of services ancillary to transport which have any of the objects or effects lisced above'.
Dette ræsonnement gælder også i den foreliggende sag, hvor rejsebureauerne for det første sælger trans portydelser såvel som andre rejseydelser som Leks. hotelophold, adgangsbilletter til diverse forestillinger og arrangementer osv., som leveres af et stort antal transportører, rejsearrangører og andre tjene steydere, og hvor hver transportør — det vil her sige hvert jernbaneselskab — for det andet sælger sine ydelser via et meget stort antal distributører, hvad enten disse er agenter alier andre jernbaner.
This reasoning is applicable to the case in point, since, on the one hand, agents sell transport services, but also hotel, CourisC, artistic and other services organized and supplied by a very large number of carriers, cour operaeors and ocher provi­ders of services and, on Che ocher, each transport undertaking — in the case in point, each railway company — sells its services through a very large number of distributors, whether agents or other railway companies.
Af følgende tre grunde kan UIC's argumenter dog ikke tages til følge :
However, che UlC's argumenc cannoc be accepted, for Chree reasons.
I den foreliggende sag kan rejsebureauerne således ikke betragtes som hjælpeorganer, der er integreret i jernbanernes virksomhed.
Travel agenta cannoc cherefore, in chis particular instance, be described as auxiliary organs forming an integral part of the railway companies.
EØF-Traktatens artikel 85 finder følgelig anvendelse på det forhold, der bestir mellem rejsebureauerne og jernbanerne.
The rela­tionships between the railway companies and the travel agencs are consequently subjecc co che provi­sions of Arcicle 85 of che EEC Treaty.
til formål at tilgodese de særlige forhold, der gør sig gældende for transportsektoren.
It should be noted, firstly, chat the inapplicability of Council Regulación No 17 co cransport was laid down in Regulación No 141 of 26 November 1962(J), as lase amended by Regulación (EEC) No 1002/67 (*), so as Co Cake accounc of ehe distinctive features of transport.
I tredje betragtning til forordning nr. 141 hedder det herom : »transportspørgsmålets særlige karakter berettiger kun ikke-anvendelsen af forordning nr. 17 på aftaler, vedtagelser og samordnet praksis, som direkte vedrører transportydelser.·
The third recital of Regulation No 141 states in Chis respecc : 'whereas Che distinctive features of transport make it justifiable to exempt from the application of Regulation No 17 only agreements, decisions and concerted practices directly relating to the provision of transport services'.
Kommissionen sendte den 10. oktober 1991 UIC en meddelelse af klagepunkter i overensstemmelse med procedurereglerne i forordning nr. 17.
On 10 October 1991, the statement, of objections has been sent to the UIC, in accordance with the procedural rules laid down in Council Regulation No 17.
I sit skriftlige og mundtlige svar på Kommissionens klagepunkter har UIC anfægtet anvendelsen af forordning nr. 17.
In its written and oral reply to the statement of objections, the UIC disputed the applicability of
O Sag 311/85, dom af 1. oktober 1987, Sml. 1987, s. 3801.
(') Judgment of 1 October 1987, ECR 3801 (1987).
92 der falder uafhængig tjenesteydelsesvirksomhed, ind under forordning nr. 17.
92 dent basis, which falls within the scope of Regula­tion No 17.
autorisation af billetudstedende rejsebureauer og for deres salg af togbilletter.
are appointed for Che sale of tickecs and the condi­tions under which those tickecs are distributed.
Det er klart, at denne aktivitet ikke »direkte· vedrører transportydelser.
Clearly, this activity does not relate 'directly' to the provision of transport services.
C. Sammenslutning af virksomheder
C. The concept of association of undertakings
Jernbanerne i EF er offentlige virksomheder, der har fået til opgave at levere og sælge passager- og godstransportydelser.
The Community's railway companies are public undertakings entrusted with the provision and marketing of passenger and goods transport services.
På de forskellige transport markeder, de opererer på, konkurrerer de med andre offentlige eller private virksomheder.
They operate on the various transport markets in competition with other public or private undertakings.
De er således at betragte som virksomheder efter EØF-Traktatens artikel 85.
They are therefore undertakings within meaning of Article 85 of the EEC Treaty.
UIC er følgelig en virksomhedssammenslutning efter EØF-Traktatens artikel 85.
The UIC is thus an association of undertakings within the meaning of Article 85 of the EEC Treaty.
Også i Rådets direktiv 82/470 af 29. juni 1982 om foranstaltninger til fremme af den faktiske udøvelse af etableringsfriheden og den fri udveksling af tjenesteydelser ved selvstændig virksomhed inden for visse hjælpeerhverv i forbindelse med transport og rejsebureauvirksomhed og inden for pakhus- og oplagringsvirksomhed (') skelnes der helt klart mellem hjælpefunktioner ved præstering af trans portydelser og hjælpefunktioner som rejseagent.
In Council Directive 82/470/EEC of 29 June 1982 on measures to facilitate the effective exercise of freedom of establishment and freedom to provide services in respect of activities of self­employed persons in certain services incidental to transpore and Cravei agencies and in storage and warehou­sing ('), Che Council also drew a clear discinccion becween che cwo accivicies of provider of services incidental Co Cransport and travel agent.
Under proceduren har UIC gjort gældende, at UlC-cirkulære 130 blot er en henstilling, som ikke forhindrer jernbanerne i at meddele autorisation til rejsebureauer uden for deres territorium.
During the proceeding, the UIC asserted that UIC leaflet No 130 was merely a recommendation which did not prevent railway companies from appointing agents outside their territory.
Ifølge UIC kan en sådan henstilling ikke betragtes som en vedtagelse inden for en sammenslutning af virksomheder efter EØF-Traktatens artikel 85.
According to the UIC, such a recommendation did not consti­tute a decision by an association of undertakings within Che meaning of Article 85 of che EEC Treacy.
Hertil må bemærkes, at bestemmelserne i UIC-cirkulære 130 blev fastsat af UIC's arbejdsorganer og vedtaget af organisationens passagerudvalg, inden det blev udsendt til medlemsjernbanerne.
Ic should be noced in chis respecc Chac ehe provi­sions of UIC leaflee No 130 were drawn up by che UIC's working bodies and adopeed by che Passenger Committee before being sent to the member railways.
Med hensyn til den provisionssats, der benyttes over for rejsebureauerne, har formanden for UIC's distributionskomité udtalt, at »distributionskomitéen har foreslået og opnået, at provisionssatsen forhøjes til 10% fra 1. januar 1990 ...«.
With regard to the rate of commission granted to agents, the Chairman of the UIC's Distribution Committee stated that 'the Distribution Committee has successfully proposed that the rate of commis­sion granted to agents should be increased to 10 % as from 1 January 1990...'.
Betegnelsen »agent de voyage·, der er identisk i Belgien, Frankrig og Luxembourg, dækker over samme begreb som »travel agent« i Irland og Det Forenede Kongerige samt »Reisebürounternehmer« i Tyskland.
The Cicle of 'Cravei agcnc' in Ireland and Che Uniced Kingdom corresponds Co 'agenC de voyages' in Belgium, France and Luxembourg and 'Reisebü­rounternehmer' in Germany.
Denne ændring blev meddelt UIC's medlemmer ved skrivelse af 24. januar 1990 fra formanden for UIC's distributionskomité.
The UIC member railways were informed of this change by letter from the Chairman of the Distri­bution Committee dated 24 January 1990.
Det må således konkluderes, at rejseagentvirksomhed og transporthjælpevirksomhed ikke er det samme, og at rejseagentvirksomhed er en
Ic muse cherefore be concluded that there can be no confusion becween Che accivicies of a cravei agenc and of a person providing services incidental to Cransport, and chac che accivicies of cravei agencs conscicuce a provision of services on an indepen­
UlC-cirkulæret indeholder forskrifter i bindende vendinger.
UIC leaflet No 130 comprises instructions drafted in mandatory terms.
Dette gælder bla. § 1.1, der fastsætter, at »autorisation af rejsebureauer meddeles af den vigtigste jernbane i det land, hvor bureauet er beliggende.« gende.«
Such is the case with para­graph 1.1, which states that 'agencies shall be accre­dited by the main railway of the country in which they are situated'.
Der bestir følgelig konkurrence sivel mellem bureauerne indbyrdes som mellem dem og jernba nerne om udstedelse af billetter.
However, most of the provisions in the leaflet are not presented as being binding on the railways.
Størstedelen af bestemmelserne i dette cirkulære fremstår dog ikke som værende bindende for jern banerne.
Competition therefore exists between agents, and between agents and the railways, for the issuing of ticketa.
Brugerne opnir fordele ved, at der findes rejsebureauer med ret til at sælge togbilletter.
Consumers derive benefit from the presence of travel agents entitled to sell rail ticketa.
Det store antal billetsalgssteder giver nemlig brugerne let adgang til at købe togbilletter.
The availability of many different places where ticketa are sold enables consumers to purchase them without having to go too far out of their way.
Imidlertid har EF-Domstolen i sin dom i IAZ/ Kommissionen (') statueret at »selv om en henstilling fra en sammenslutning af virksomheder ikke mitte være bindende, falder den ikke uden for anvendelsesområdet for artikel 85, stk. 1, nir det forhold, at de virksomheder, henstillingen er rettet til, tilslutter sig den, har afgørende indvirkning pi konkurrencen pi det relevante marked.·
Nevertheless, in Joined Cases 96 to 102, 104, 105, 108 and 110/82 IAZ v. Commission ('), the Court of Justice ruled that 'a recommendation, even if ie has no binding effect, cannot escape Article 85 (1) where compliance with the recommendation by the undertakings to which it is addressed has an appreciable influence on competition in the market in question'.
Ifølge oplysningerne fra jernbanerne om deres vilkir for autorisation af rejsebureauer har jernba nerne i meget vid udstrækning accepteret og fulgt bestemmelserne i cirkulære 130.
The information provided by the railways regarding the conditions under which they decide to appoint travel agents shows that the provisions contained in UIC leaflet No 130 are very widely accepted and applied by the railways.
Endelig vil brugerne måske også kunne opnå økonomiske fordele af, at billetterne kan udstedes af disse rejsebureauer.
Lastly, consumers may derive financial benefic from the presence of such travel agents.
Med hensyn til provisionssatser kan det således konstateres, at de italienske jernbaner er de eneste i Fællesskabet der yder provision efter en anden sats.
Thus, with regard to the rates of commission, it has been found thac, within the Community, only the Italian railways grant a different rate from the other railways.
Den regel, der er fastsat i UIC om, at autorisation kun kan meddeles af jernbaneselskabet i det land, hvori bureauet er beliggende, fører imidlertid til en begrænsning af antallet af autoriserede bureauer og dermed også til en begrænsning af konkurrencen mellem billetafsætningskanalerne, hvilket er til skade for forbrugerne.
However, the position adopted within the UIC, namely that appointment may be granted only by the railway of the country in which che agency is situated, has the effect of limiting the number of appointed agents and thus of restricting competi­tion between outleta for the sale of ticketa, to the detrimenc of consumers.
Det må således konkluderes, at UlC-cirkulære 130 nøje afspejler UIC's vilje til at samordne medlem mernes adfærd i overensstemmelse med organisa tionens vedtægter, og at det i henhold til EF-Domstolens retspraksis (*) må betragtes som en vedtagelse inden for en virksomhedssammenslutning efter EØF-Traktatens artikel 85.
During the proceeding, the UIC's representatives stated that control of the appointment of agencies by each national railway was necessary under the current operation of international rail transport.
Under proceduren har repræsentanter for UIC udtalt at det med den måde, hvorpå den internationale jernbanetransport for øjeblikket fungerer, er nødvendigt for hver enkelt nationale jernbane at have den fulde kontrol med autorisationen af billetudstedende bureauer.
It must therefore be concluded chac UIC leaflet No 130 accurately reflects the UIC's desire to coordi­nate its members' conduct in accordance with its statutes and that, in accordance with the case-law of the Court of Justice (2), it constitutes a decision by an association of undertakings within the meaning of Article 85.
E. Konkurrencebegrænsninger
E. The restrictions of competition
De enkelte jernbaneselskabers fulde kontrol autorisationen af rejsebureauer i deres land
Control of the appointment of travel agents by each national railway company