COMPETITION/POSTAL SERVICES: COURT RULES IN FAVOUR OF SURCHARGE FOR RE-MAILING.

The EU Court said the German post office could request extra payment because the remuneration postal service operators in the European Union currently pay each other for processing and delivering international mail - known as terminal dues - does not reflect the actual costs of the service. The ruling was only a partial victory for state-owned Deutsche Post, however, as it was told it could not charge the full domestic postage given the absence of competition for letter delivery, still a monopoly in Europe. In a statement, the Court said that the postal services may demand from the senders only the difference between the 'terminal dues' and the full internal postage, as otherwise they would abuse their dominant position within the meaning of EU competition law.Monti rubber-stamps post office probe.The European Commission has formally begun an investigation into post offices of six European Union countries which might be using revenues from their letter delivery monopoly to subsidise areas of business open to free competition. EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti revealed at a press conference recently that "informal investigations" were under way concerning France's La Poste and postal monopolies in Spain and Belgium. Mr Monti added the Commission had...