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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 04-01-30
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] La Commission décide de procéder à une enquête sectorielle sur la
vente de droits sportifs aux sociétés Internet et aux opérateurs de
téléphonie mobile 3G
[02] Commission clears Hogg Robinson's purchase of Kuoni's corporate travel
business
[03] Commission clears acquisition of Ashanti Goldfields by AngloGold
[04] La Commission et la CEPT signent un protocole d'accord pour soutenir
les nouvelles technologies de communication sans fil
[05] January 2004 : economic sentiment regains its upward trend in both the
EU and the euro area
[06] January 2004 : the euro area business climate indicator recovered
[07] Troisième trimestre 2003 : l'UE15 a enregistré un excédent des
échanges courants de 22,3 milliards d'€ ; excédent de 5,6 milliards d'€
pour la balance des services
[08] Plant genomics fertile ground for collaboration with ERA-NET
[09] Wasted talents : the situation of women scientists in Eastern European
countries
[10] EU and US consumers debate food policy and obesity, copyright laws and
more : sessions open to media
[11] OIE to hold Global Conference on Animal Welfare (23-25/02, Paris)
[12] Autre matériel diffusé
Midday Express 30/01/2004
TXT: FR ENPDF:DOC:Midday Express 30/01/2004
[01] La Commission décide de procéder à une enquête sectorielle sur la
vente de droits sportifs aux sociétés Internet et aux opérateurs de
téléphonie mobile 3G
La Commission européenne a décidé de procéder à une vaste enquête
concernant la vente de droits sportifs aux sociétés Internet et aux
fournisseurs de services de téléphonie mobile de troisième génération (3G).
L'enquête a pour objectif d'obtenir une vision aussi claire et large que
possible des conditions d'accès aux droits audiovisuels sportifs dans
l'Union européenne. Les droits sportifs, et notamment les droits sur les
compétitions de football, sont une locomotive puissante non seulement pour
la vente d'abonnements de télévision payante, mais aussi pour le
développement des marchés des nouveaux médias, tels que les services
Internet améliorés et l'UMTS. La Commission veut s'assurer que l'accès à ce
contenu d'appel essentiel ne fait l'objet d'aucune restriction indue, dans
l'intérêt de la création d'entreprises, du choix du consommateur et de
l'innovation.
[02] Commission clears Hogg Robinson's purchase of Kuoni's corporate travel
business
The European Commission has granted regulatory approval under the Merger
Regulation to the proposed acquisition by Hogg Robinson plc (UK),
controlled by the Schröder Ventures Ltd, of the corporate travel business
of Kuoni Reisen Holding AG. The acquired businesses are Kuoni
Geschäftsreisen AG (Switzerland), Kuoni Reisen Beteiligungs-GmbH (Germany),
BTI Business Travel International Deutschland GmbH (Germany), Kuoni
Geschäftsreisen GmbH (Austria) and Kuoni Utazasi Iroda Kft (Hungary). (The
operation, which was notified to the Commission on 18 December 2003, was
examined under a simplified procedure).
[03] Commission clears acquisition of Ashanti Goldfields by AngloGold
The European Commission has granted regulatory approval under the Merger
Regulation to the proposed acquisition of gold mining company Ashanti
Goldfields by AngloGold. (The operation, which was notified to the
Commission on 17 December 2003, was examined under a simplified procedure).
[04] La Commission et la CEPT signent un protocole d'accord pour soutenir
les nouvelles technologies de communication sans fil
La Commission européenne et la Conférence européenne des administrations
des postes et des télécommunications (CEPT) ont signé aujourd'hui un
protocole d'accord visant à stimuler une collaboration constructive dans
des domaines d'intérêt commun. Des activités conjointes sont attendues,
notamment pour permettre aux Européens de bénéficier de nouvelles
technologies et produits de communication sans fil.
[05] January 2004 : economic sentiment regains its upward trend in both the
EU and the euro area
After a small setback in December, the economic sentiment indicator (ESI)
for the EU regained its upward trend that had started in summer of last
year. The indicator increased by 0.4 percentage points to a level of 96.6,
the highest value since summer 2001. For the euro area, the indicator also
rose, although by a more moderate 0.2 points, reaching a level of 95.8. The
improvement of the ESI for the EU is reflected in all underlying
components. In the industry sector, business confidence resumed the upward
trend observed in the second half of 2003. Consumer confidence continued
its slow but steady improvement since April 2003. The construction sector
showed a small rise in confidence, continuing the tendency from the
previous three months. Finally, confidence in retail trade made up some of
the losses incurred at the end of 2003.
[06] January 2004 : the euro area business climate indicator recovered
After a small worsening recorded in December, the Business Climate
Indicator (BCI) for the euro area increased slightly between December and
January, reaching a value of 0.04. This development was mainly driven by an
improvement in opinions about production expectations and export order
books, while production trend in the recent past decreased moderately.
Total order books and stocks of finished products remained unchanged.
[07] Troisième trimestre 2003 : l'UE15 a enregistré un excédent des
échanges courants de 22,3 milliards d'€ ; excédent de 5,6 milliards d'€
pour la balance des services
Selon les dernières révisions de Eurostat, la balance des opérations
courantes de l'UE15 avec les pays tiers a enregistré un excédent de 22,3
milliards d'€ durant le troisième trimestre 2003, par rapport à un excédent
de 24,0 milliards d'€ au troisième trimestre 2002 et à un excédent de 11,1
milliards d'€ au deuxième trimestre 2003. La légère diminution de
l'excédent de la balance des opérations courantes de l'UE15 enregistrée au
troisième trimestre 2003 par rapport au troisième trimestre 2002 a résulté
d'une diminution plus forte des opérations courantes de crédit (-5,3%) que
de débit (-5,1%).
[08] Plant genomics fertile ground for collaboration with ERA-NET
The European Union has announced the support of an ERA-NET aimed at
coordinating the national research programmes in the area of plant genomics
of ten EU member states and Norway. In yet another step to create a true
European Research Area (ERA), the four year project, "European Research
Area Plant Genomics (ERA-PG)", will be supported by €2.2 million from the
Sixth Research Framework Programme (FP6, 2002-2006). It focuses on sharing
best practices, developing common programme management procedures and joint
activities, such as the pooling of resources and joint calls for proposals.
Trans-national cooperation at programme level will help to maximise the
return on the €80 million invested in plant genomics across Europe each
year. At the same time, the research programmes must clearly address
consumer fears and arguments about possible environmental danger versus the
agricultural advantages of plant genomics, while highlighting their
importance as an area of scientific research.
[09] Wasted talents : the situation of women scientists in Eastern European
countries
European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin today welcomed a new report
on the situation of women scientists in the countries of Central and
Eastern Europe and the Baltic States. The report concludes that women
account for 38% of the scientific workforce in the Central and Eastern
European Countries and the Baltic States (the Enwise countries), but this
statistic conceals some bitter truths: a large proportion of female
scientists is employed in areas where R&D expenditure is lowest. Inadequate
resources and poor infrastructure impede the progress of a whole generation
of promising scientists. Men are three times more likely to reach senior
academic positions than women. In this rather gloomy picture, however,
there is a positive sign: women scientists from the Enwise countries
participate significantly in the EU's Framework Programme. The Commission
welcomes this fact, as the Framework Programme is a strategic tool to
reinforce research capacities and the participation of women in research.
[10] EU and US consumers debate food policy and obesity, copyright laws and
more : sessions open to media
On Monday, 2 February, at 9am, David Byrne, European Commissioner for
Health and Consumer Protection, and Shaun Donnelly, of the US Bureau of
Economic and Business Affairs will open the 6th annual meeting of the
Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD). This three day meeting is being
held in the Hotel Renaissance on Rue du Parnasse in Brussels and its
plenary sessions (including the opening) will be open to the media. The
plenary sessions include a full day debate on Tuesday, 3 February, about
how the regulation of the food and its marketing can help address the
problem of obesity, and a full day debate on 4 February on copyright and
consumer interests. The TACD brings together US and EU consumer
organisations to formulate policy recommendations. Commissioner David Byrne
said : "The TACD is an important source of ideas both for EU and for US
policymakers. I will be taking a particular interest in their debate on
tackling obesity, which is becoming a major public health problem on both
sides of the Atlantic. Changing consumer behaviour is the key to rolling
back this epidemic. Who better to debate the issue, then, than consumer
organisation." More information about the TACD, including a full programme
for its meeting next week, can be found at: http://www.tacd.org
[11] OIE to hold Global Conference on Animal Welfare (23-25/02, Paris)
The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) will hold its Global
Conference on Animal Welfare in Paris on 23-25 February 2004. David Byrne,
European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, and OIE President
Abdoulaye Bouna Niang will make opening speeches to the conference which
will be also addressed by agriculture ministers from France, Germany,
Ireland, Cameroon and Uruguay. During the Conference the Commission and the
OIE will formally sign a declaration confirming full observer status of the
Commission at the OIE, allowing the Commission to become an active
participant in future OIE meetings. In recent months OIE expert groups have
been working to develop international standards and guidelines on the
welfare of animals during land and sea transport, humane slaughter for
consumption, and the killing of animals for disease control. Draft
guidelines on these subjects which will be discussed at the conference.
Guiding principles on animal welfare developed by the OIE's permanent
Working Group on Animal Welfare will be submitted for adoption by
representatives of the 166 OIE Member countries at the OIE General Session
in May 2004. More than 500 participants from more than 70 countries are
expected to attend the conference at the Salons Hoche, 75008 Paris. The
opening session on 23 February will be followed by a press briefing and
there will be a press conference at 5 pm after the closing session on 25
February. Requests for press accreditation should be submitted to
[email protected] and must include a press card number. A brochure is
available in Office BREY 6/104. Further info on: http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/animal/welfare/index_en.htm
and http://animal-welfare.oie.int
[12] Autre matériel diffusé
Speech by Frits Bolkestein : "Learning the lessons of the Financial
Services Action Plan" at Edinburgh Finance and Investment Seminar (29/01)
Discours de Mme de Palacio : "La sécurité routière : un effort partagé" au
lancement de la Charte européenne de la sécurité routière (29/01)
Calendrier du 2 au 7 février 2004
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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