The fears of governments of several European countries, notably France, that the European Commission would progressively invoke the provisions of Article 90 of the Treaty of Rome to make Community law by fiat seem to be borne out by news that the Commission now proposes to order deregulation of value-added network services within the Community by 1991. A final decision is to be taken in March, after consultation on detail. The proposal covers almost every aspect of telecommunications except for voice telephony and telex. Many of the services are already liberalised and subject to competition in the UK, but are still strict state monopolies in West Germany, France and Italy. Article 90 empowers the Commission to issue directives where it sees state-owned monopolies distorting competition; its use is being challenged by the French government in the European Court of Justice. France, now backed by three other European governments, is challenging the earlier Brussels diktat that marketing of telecommunications terminal equipment be liberalised by 1991.
