natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
The Dutch public broadcasters argued that the measures in question should be considered existing aid because they constitute part of the general financing system for public broadcasting.
Nizozemske javne radiotelevizijske postaje so trdile, da bi bilo treba zadevne ukrepe obravnavati kot veljavno pomoč, saj so del splošnega finančnega sistema za javno radiodifuzijo.
Moreover, they remarked that the Commission should assess the financing of public broadcasting only in the light of the Protocol on the system of public broadcasting in the Member States, annexed to the EC Treaty (hereinafter ‘Amsterdam Protocol’), and should not apply the criteria of the Altmark judgment or Article 87(1) or 86(2) of the EC Treaty.
Poleg tega so pripomnile, da bi morala Komisija oceniti financiranje javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj le v skladu s Protokolom o sistemu javne radiotelevizije v državah članicah, ki je priložen k Pogodbi ES (v nadaljnjem besedilu „Amsterdamski protokol“), in ne bi smela uporabiti meril iz sodbe v zadevi Altmark ali člena 87(1) in člena 86(2) Pogodbe ES.
CLT-UFA noted that it was not until 2002 that the accounts of the public service broadcasting system could be verified and approved by an independent accountant.
CLT-UFA je opozoril, da je neodvisni računovodja lahko računovodske evidence sistema javne radiodifuzije preveril in odobril šele leta 2002.
The public broadcasters commented that there is no over-compensation of €110 million as stated by the Commission.
Javne radiotelevizijske postaje so pripomnile, da ni bilo nobenega prekomernega nadomestila v višini 110 milijonov EUR, kot je trdila Komisija.
First of all, the public broadcasters and the government work with different accounting systems.
Prvič, javne radiotelevizijske postaje in vlada delajo z drugačnimi računovodskimi sistemi.
The government works on a cash receipts basis of accounting and the public broadcasters work on the basis of costs and revenues which are entered in the accounts at the moment of the transaction.
Vlada uporablja računovodstvo na podlagi gotovinskih prejemkov, javne radiotelevizijske postaje pa računovodstvo na podlagi stroškov in prihodkov, ki se obračunajo ob transakciji.
This causes discrepancies.
To povzroča razlike.
In addition, the revenues of the FOR are, according to the public broadcasters, earmarked for specific future goals.
Poleg tega so prihodki sklada FOR po navedbah javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj namenjeni za prihodnje posebne cilje.
Moreover, they commented that the excess financing cannot lead to distortions in other markets, as this financing can only be used for the public service activities.
Pripomnile so tudi, da preveč izplačano financiranje ne bi moglo povzročiti izkrivljanja na drugih trgih, saj se lahko ta oblika financiranja uporabi samo za dejavnosti javnih storitev.
ACT stated that STER behaves in an anti-competitive manner by undercutting prices in the advertising market.
ACT je navedel, da se fundacija STER obnaša nekonkurenčno s tem, ko je nelojalno znižala cene na oglaševalskem trgu.
It argues that since the total annual advertising time of public broadcasters is more limited than that of commercial broadcasters, the STER should charge higher prices than commercial operators.
Trdi, da bi morala fundacija STER, glede na to, da je skupni letni oglaševalski čas javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj bolj omejen kot čas komercialnih radiotelevizijskih postaj, zaračunavati višje cene od komercialnih operaterjev.
SBS Broadcasting confirmed that prices in the Dutch television advertising market are set for GRP (Gross Rating Point) category 20-49.
SBS Broadcasting je potrdil, da so cene na nizozemskem televizijskem oglaševalskem trgu določene za rating GRP („Gross Rating Point“) kategorije gledalcev 20–49 let.
However, as the public broadcasters attract more viewers than commercial broadcasters outside this viewer group, advertisers would be willing to pay a premium on the GRP 20-49.
Ker pa javne radiotelevizijske postaje privabljajo več gledalcev zunaj te skupine gledalcev kot komercialne radiotelevizijske postaje, bi bili oglaševalci pripravljeni plačati premijo za rating GRP 20–49.
Therefore, a comparison of the GRP 20-49 would not convey the economic reality of the product.
Zato primerjava ratinga GRP 20–49 ne bi izražala gospodarskega stanja proizvoda.
Moreover, SBS remarked that for GRP 13+ public broadcasters set lower prices than commercial broadcasters.
Poleg tega je SBS pripomnil, da so za rating GRP skupine gledalcev 13+ javne radiotelevizijske postaje določile nižje cene kot komercialne radiotelevizijske postaje.
To support its comments SBS submitted overviews of the average gross GRP 13+ prices for the different channels during prime time in 1995-2004 and per month in 2003 and 2004, which show that those of public broadcasters are lower than those of most commercial operators.
Da bi SBS podprl svoje pripombe, je predložil pregled povprečnih bruto cen za GRP 13+ za različne kanale v času največje gledanosti v obdobju med letoma 1995 in 2004 ter po mesecih v letih 2003 in 2004, ki kaže, da so bile cene javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj nižje od cen večine komercialnih operaterjev.
According to CLT-UFA the NOS RTV has paid excessive prices for football rights.
Po navedbah CLT-UFA postaja NOS RTV plačuje pretirano visoke cene za pravice prenosa nogometnih tekem.
The prices were far above market prices.
Cene so bile precej nad tržnimi cenami.
CLT-UFA submitted calculation models to show how they calculate the prices for football rights and concluded on this basis that the bid made by the NOS RTV for the rights for the Champions League matches of 2002 was significantly higher than that made by CLT-UFA.
CLT-UFA je predložil modele za izračun, da bi prikazal, kako izračunavajo cene za pravice prenosa nogometnih tekem, na podlagi katerih je CLT-UFA ugotovil, da je bila ponudba postaje NOS RTV za pravice prenosa tekem Lige prvakov leta 2002 občutno višja od ponudbe, ki jo je predložil CLT-UFA.
ACT and CLT-UFA considered, moreover, that the Commission should not reach the conclusion that there is insufficient evidence of overpayment of football rights on the basis of one example where a commercial operator may have overbid.
ACT in CLT-UFA sta menila tudi, da Komisija ne bi smela na podlagi enega primera, pri katerem bi lahko komercialni operater ponudil previsoko ceno, sklepati, da obstajajo nezadostni dokazi o preplačilu za pravice prenosa nogometnih tekem.
The association of cable operators, VECAI, raises two issues.
Združenje kabelskih operaterjev VECAI je poudarilo dve zadevi.
First of all, it considers that the cable operators who are subject to the ‘must carry’ obligation should be able to ask for a payment from the relevant broadcasters.
Prvič, menilo je, da bi morali imeti kabelski operaterji, ob upoštevanju obveznosti razširjanja programa, možnost, da zahtevajo plačilo od ustreznih radiotelevizijskih postaj.
Due to the ‘must carry’ obligation, the public broadcasters have not paid a fee for the transmission of the signal over the cable networks.
Zaradi obveznosti razširjanja programa javne radiotelevizijske postaje niso plačale pristojbine za prenos signala po kabelskih omrežjih.
Secondly, VECAI argued that the cable operators actually do pay a fee to the organisations which manage rights on behalf of the NOS RTV, but the NOS RTV and the Dutch Government regard this as a management fee.
Drugič, združenje VECAI je trdilo, da kabelski operaterji dejansko ne plačujejo provizije pravim upravljavskim organizacijam v imenu NOS RTV, vendar pa NOS RTV in nizozemska vlada to štejeta kot provizijo za upravljanje.
According to the VECAI it is a fee for intellectual property rights in disguise.
Po navedbah združenja VECAI gre za provizijo za prikrite pravice intelektualne lastnine.
COMMENTS FROM THE DUTCH AUTHORITIES
PRIPOMBE NIZOZEMSKIH ORGANOV
The Dutch authorities state that the Commission's assumption that the relevant measures are not part of the regular, annual financing of the public broadcasters as part of the state funding is erroneous.
Nizozemski organi trdijo, da je domneva Komisije, in sicer da zadevni ukrepi niso del rednega, letnega financiranja javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj v okviru državnega financiranja, napačna.
The financing which is the subject of the investigation stems from the regular financing mechanism and was an integral part of the budget planning which led to the payments to the public broadcasters.
Financiranje, ki je predmet preiskave, izhaja iz rednega mehanizma financiranja in je bilo v celoti del proračunskega načrtovanja, kar je vodilo do plačil javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam.
According to the authorities, the FOR, the matching funds, the CoBo Fund and the payments to the NOB are part of the regular, annual financing mechanism.
Po navedbah nizozemskih organov sklad FOR, dopolnilna sredstva, sklad CoBo in plačila organizaciji NOB niso del rednega, letnega mehanizma financiranja.
The Dutch authorities finally remind the Commission that the assessment should take into account the specific context in which the public service broadcasters operate.
Nazadnje so nizozemski organi Komisijo opozorili, da pri oceni ne bi smela upoštevati posebnega okvira, v katerem delujejo javne radiotelevizijske postaje.
The authorities request the Commission to take into account the Amsterdam Protocol.
Organi Komisijo prosijo, naj upošteva uporabo Amsterdamskega protokola.
If necessary, the subject of the present procedure should be qualified as compatible aid within the meaning of Article 86(2) of the EC Treaty, within the context of the principles laid down in the Amsterdam Protocol.
Po potrebi bi se moral ta postopek opredeliti kot združljiva pomoč v smislu člena 86(2) Pogodbe ES, v okviru načel, določenih v Amsterdamskem protokolu.
The amount provisionally indicated by the Commission as possible over-compensation is erroneous.
Znesek, ki ga je Komisija začasno navedla kot možno prekomerno nadomestilo, je napačen.
This was inferred from the resources of funds which were wrongly qualified as reserves.
Izračunan je bil iz virov finančnih sredstev, ki so se napačno opredelili kot rezerve.
Since the use of these funds is pre-determined and is subject to control there cannot be over-compensation.
Ker je uporaba teh sredstev vnaprej določena in se preverja, ni možno govoriti o prekomernem nadomestilu.
Moreover, the authorities argue that if the measures concerned are deemed to be state aid, the aid should be considered to be existing state aid within the meaning of Article 88(1) of the EC Treaty.
Poleg tega nizozemski organi trdijo, da bi se v primeru, če bi se zadevni ukrepi opredelili kot državna pomoč, ta pomoč morala obravnavati kot veljavna državna pomoč v smislu člena 88(1) Pogodbe ES.
The Dutch authorities point out that the accounts of the individual public broadcasting associations have always been subject to approval by an independent accountant.
Nizozemski organi opozarjajo, da je moral neodvisni računovodja vedno odobriti računovodske evidence posameznih javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj.
The Dutch authorities consider that broadcasts of popular and less popular sports fall within the definition of the main task of the public broadcasters.
Nizozemski organi menijo, da športni prenosi priljubljenih in manj priljubljenih športov sodijo v opredelitev pojma glavne naloge javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj.
The Dutch authorities consider that, when determining their bid for transmission rights, public broadcasters did not pay more than was necessary to secure the acquisition of important rights in relation to their public service mission and overall programming.
Nizozemski organi menijo, da javne radiotelevizijske postaje pri določanju svoje ponudbe za pravice do prenosa niso plačale več, kot je bilo potrebno za zagotovitev odkupa pomembnih pravic, povezanih z njihovim opravljanjem javnih storitev in celotnega načrtovanja programov.
The authorities reiterate that the public service mission of the NOB is part of the public broadcasting system.
Organi ponovno poudarjajo, da je opravljanje javnih storitev organizacije NOB sestavni del sistema javnih storitev.
The fact that NOB does not charge the public broadcasters for the service it provides does not imply that aid is granted to the public service broadcasters.
Dejstvo, da javne radiotelevizijske postaje ne plačujejo za storitve, ki jih izvaja NOB, ne pomeni, da se pomoč dodeli javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam.
The Dutch authorities state that, given that the commercial operators do not demand copyright payments from cable operators either, the NOS RTV could be said to be acting as a normal market operator in the circumstances of this particular market.
Nizozemski organi trdijo, da bi se lahko za NOS RTV, glede na to, da komercialni operaterji tudi od kabelskih operaterjev ne zahtevajo plačil avtorskih pravic, štelo, da deluje kot običajni akter na trgu v okoliščinah tega posebnega trga.
ASSESSMENT OF THE MEASURES UNDER STATE AID RULES
OCENA UKREPOV NA PODLAGI PRAVIL O DRŽAVNI POMOČI
EXISTENCE OF AID WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 87(1) OF THE EC TREATY
OBSTOJ POMOČI V SMISLU ČLENA 87(1) POGODBE ES
Article 87(1) of the Treaty lays down the following conditions for the presence of state aid.
Člen 87(1) določa naslednje pogoje za prisotnost državne pomoči.
First, there must be an intervention by the State or through state resources.
Prvič, obstajati mora posredovanje države ali posredovanje iz državnih sredstev.
Second, it must confer an advantage on the recipient.
Drugič, upravičencu mora podeliti ugodnost.
Third, it must distort or threaten to distort competition.
Tretjič, pomoč mora izkrivljati ali bi lahko izkrivljala konkurenco.
Fourth, the intervention must be liable to affect trade between Member States.
Četrtič, posredovanje mora vplivati na trgovino med državami članicami.
Presence of state resources
Prisotnost državnih sredstev
The payments referred to in Articles 106a and 170c of the Media Act, which are categorized by the Commission as ad hoc payments, can be divided into matching fund payments, FOR payments and CoBo Fund payments.
Plačila iz člena 106a in člena 170c Zakona o medijih, ki jih Komisija uvršča med ad hoc plačila, se lahko razdelijo na tako imenovana plačila iz dopolnilnih sredstev, plačila iz sklada FOR in plačila iz sklada CoBo.
Matching fund payments
Plačila iz dopolnilnih sredstev
In the case of the matching funds, money is first set aside within the AOR — which is a fund whose resources are owned by the State and managed by the Media Authority — for the purpose of matching certain types of higher than foreseen expenditure of public service broadcasters.
V primeru dopolnilnih sredstev se denar najprej nameni za sklad AOR – sredstva tega sklada so v lasti države, upravlja pa jih Organ za medije – za usklajevanje nekaterih vrst izdatkov javnih radiotelevizijskih postaj, ki so višji, kot je bilo predvideno.
In a second step, the state resources represented by the matching funds of the AOR are transferred to the NOS RTV.
V drugem koraku se državna sredstva, ki pomenijo dopolnilna sredstva sklada AOR, prenesejo na NOS RTV.
FOR payments
Plačila iz sklada FOR
The payments made by the FOR fund are considered state resources.
Plačila iz sklada FOR se obravnavajo kot državna sredstva.
Although the FOR is a fund administered and managed by the PO, the money comes from the AOR, which is part of the media budget.
Čeprav je FOR sklad, ki ga vodi in upravlja PO, črpa sredstva iz sklada AOR, ki je del medijskega proračuna.
More importantly, as described in section 2.3.3.2, the PO distributes the money on the basis of agreements that are made in advance on the use of FOR money.
Pomembnejše dejstvo je, kot je opisano v oddelku 2.3.3.2, da PO razdeli denarna sredstva na podlagi vnaprej sklenjenih sporazumov o uporabi denarnih sredstev iz sklada FOR.
Although it is the PO which proposes how the money should be used, it is the Minister of Education, Science and Culture who ‘adopts the proposal’ and establishes for which purposes the money can be used.
Čeprav PO predlaga, kako naj bi se denar uporabil, je minister za izobraževanje, znanost in kulturo tisti, ki „sprejme predlog“ in določi, za katere namene se lahko uporabijo denarna sredstva.
The PO can only take the decision to spend the money once the Minister has established the criteria for the distribution of the money.
PO lahko odločitev o porabi denarja sprejme šele, ko je minister določil merila za razdelitev denarnih sredstev.
The PO has to take into account the rules laid down by the Minster.
PO mora upoštevati pravila, ki jih določi minister.
It can therefore be considered that the transfer of state resources takes place when the payments are made from the FOR to the individual broadcasters.
Zato se lahko šteje, da do prenosa državnih sredstev pride, ko se izvršijo plačila iz sklada FOR posameznim radiotelevizijskim postajam.
This is a transfer of state resources, which is moreover imputable to the State.
To je prenos državnih sredstev, ki ga je poleg tega mogoče pripisati državi.
In the period under investigation the public broadcasters received an amount of €191,2 million from the FOR and an amount of €[...] million from the matching funds.
Javne radiotelevizijske postaje so v obdobju preiskave prejele znesek v višini 191,2 milijona EUR iz sklada FOR in znesek v višini [...] milijona EUR iz dopolnilnih sredstev.
CoBo Fund payments
Plačila iz sklada CoBo
The payments by the CoBo Fund are considered state resources.
Plačila iz sklada CoBo se obravnavajo kot državna sredstva.
As described in paragraph 43, the money in the CoBo Fund comes from direct contributions from the media budget and the revenues generated by the copyright payments paid by Belgian and German cable operators for the distribution of the three Dutch channels in Belgium and Germany.
Kot je opisano v oddelku 2.3.3.3, se sklad CoBo polni z neposrednimi prispevki iz medijskega proračuna in prihodki, ustvarjenimi s plačili belgijskih in nemških kabelskih operaterjev za avtorske pravice za distribucijo treh nizozemskih kanalov v Belgiji in Nemčiji.
The Commission takes the view that not only the direct contributions from the media budget, but also the copyright payments can be considered state resources.
Komisija meni, da se za državna sredstva lahko štejejo ne samo neposredni prispevki iz medijskega proračuna, ampak tudi plačila za avtorske pravice.
Indeed, the copyright payments should have been used to finance the public service costs of the broadcasters.
Dejansko bi bilo treba plačila za avtorske pravice uporabiti za financiranje stroškov javnih storitev radiotelevizijskih postaj.
Setting them aside in the CoBo Fund had the effect of increasing the need for public funding proportionally.
S tem ko so bila dana na stran v sklad CoBo, so se potrebe po javnem financiranju ustrezno povečale.
The copyright payments are therefore equivalent to resources forgone by the State.
Plačila za avtorske pravice so torej enakovredna sredstvom, ki se jim je odrekla država.
Moreover, although the CoBo Fund is owned and managed by a foundation (the board of which is governed by the public service broadcasters), the transfers from the CoBo Fund are only made available to the public service broadcasters under conditions which are determined by the State.
Poleg tega so lahko prenosi iz sklada CoBo javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam na voljo samo pod pogoji, ki jih določi država, čeprav je sklad CoBo v lasti fundacije in ga ta upravlja (njen odbor vodijo javne radiotelevizijske postaje).
The public service broadcasters received an amount of €31,7 million from the CoBo Fund in the period under investigation. This is a transfer of state resources to the individual broadcasters.
Javne radiotelevizijske postaje so v obdobju preiskave iz sklada CoBo prejele znesek v višini 31,7 milijona EUR. Ta znesek pomeni prenos državnih sredstev posameznim radiotelevizijskim postajam.
Free access to cable
Brezplačen dostop do kabelskega omrežja
The ‘must carry’ obligation imposed on cable operators does not involve any transfer of state resources, nor can the forgone revenues of cable operators be regarded as constituting a transfer of state resources.
Obveznost prenosa, ki jo morajo izpolnjevati kabelski operaterji, ne vključuje prenosa državnih sredstev, vnaprej določeni prihodki kabelskih operaterjev pa tudi ne pomenijo prenosa državnih sredstev.
The Commission has no information to suggest otherwise.
Komisija nima informacij, ki bi navajale nasprotno.
Accordingly, the preliminary view that the measure does not constitute a state aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty can be confirmed.
Zato je mogoče potrditi predhodno mnenje, da ukrep ne pomeni državne pomoči v smislu člena 87(1) Pogodbe ES.
Free technical facilities from the NOB
Brezplačna tehnična sredstva iz NOB
The public company NOB receives payments from the State for the services it is obliged to deliver to the public broadcasters.
Javno podjetje NOB od države prejema plačila za storitve, ki jih mora zagotavljati javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam.
These payments involve the direct transfer of state resources.
Ta plačila vključujejo neposreden prenos državnih sredstev.
They ultimately benefit the public broadcasters who get the services free of charge.
Končno korist imajo javne radiotelevizijske postaje, ki so storitev deležne brezplačno.
Indeed the Dutch authorities themselves have stated that the NOB simply acts as a ‘vehicle’ for transferring state funding to the public service broadcasters who receive the services of the NOB.
Dejansko so nizozemski organi sami navedli, da NOB preprosto deluje kot „posrednik“ za prenos državnih finančnih sredstev javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam, ki imajo zagotovljene storitve NOB.
Economic advantage
Gospodarska ugodnost
The ad hoc financing (payments to FOR and via the matching funds), the transfers to the CoBo Fund and the provision of free technical facilities provide an economic advantage to the Dutch public service broadcasters, in the sense that these measures relieve them from operating costs that they would otherwise have to bear.
Ad hoc financiranje (plačila v sklad FOR in prek dopolnilnih sredstev), prenosi v sklad CoBo in zagotavljanje brezplačnih tehničnih sredstev nizozemskim javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam zagotavljajo gospodarsko ugodnost v tem smislu, da jih ti ukrepi razbremenijo operativnih stroškov, ki bi jih drugače morale kriti.
Applicability of the Altmark judgment
Uporaba sodbe Altmark
The Dutch Government and the public broadcasters have argued that the measures under investigation compensate the public broadcasters for the net costs of discharging their public service mission.
Nizozemska vlada in javne radiotelevizijske postaje trdijo, da so ukrepi v preiskavi nadomestilo za neto stroške, ki jih imajo nizozemske javne radiotelevizijske postaje pri opravljanju javnih storitev.
This would imply that the measures would therefore not provide an advantage to public service broadcasters and not constitute aid, in line with the Altmark judgment.
To bi pomenilo, da ukrepi torej ne zagotavljajo ugodnosti javnim radiotelevizijskim postajam in ne pomenijo pomoči v skladu s sodbo Altmark.
State measures compensating for the net additional costs of a SGEI do not qualify as state aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty if the compensation is determined in such a way that a real advantage cannot be conferred on the undertaking.
Državni ukrepi, ki so nadomestilo za neto dodatne stroške storitve splošnega gospodarskega pomena, se ne opredelijo kot državna pomoč v smislu člena 87(1) Pogodbe ES, če se nadomestilo določi tako, da podjetju ni mogoče dodeliti resnične ugodnosti.
In the Altmark judgment the Court of Justice laid down the conditions that have to be satisfied for compensation not to be classified as state aid.
Sodišče je v sodbi Altmark določilo pogoje, ki jih je treba izpolniti, da se nadomestilo ne bi uvrstilo med državno pomoč.
These conditions are as follows:
Ti pogoji so:
first, the recipient undertaking must actually have public service obligations to discharge and the obligations must be clearly defined;
prvič, upravičeno podjetje mora dejansko opravljati obveznosti javnih storitev in te obveznosti morajo biti jasno opredeljene;