On Thursday, 10 June, the European Commission concluded that the aid received by terrestrial operators for the digitisation and extension of the terrestrial television network in remote areas of Spain was against EU State aid rules.
After a 2013 European Commission decision was annulled, further investigation confirmed that, between 2005 and 2008, terrestrial platform operators received an incompatible selective advantage over their competitors using other technologies—in breach of the principle of technological neutrality. Spain must now recover the incompatible aid.
The European Commission confirmed that the measures adopted by Spain between 2005 and 2008 to facilitate the switchover from analogue television to digital television constitute incompatible State aid. In particular, the measures lack technological neutrality, since they envisage digital terrestrial television (DTT) as the only technology for the subsidised digital switchover. Alternative technologies (such as satellite) could not benefit from the aid measures.
Spain will determine the amount to be recovered from each individual beneficiary in accordance with the methodology set out in the European Commission decision. Consequently, the final figures on the number of companies subject to recovery and on the total aid amount to be recovered cannot be known at this juncture. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)