INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: COMMISSION TAKES FRANCE TO COURT OVER BULL.

• Position: Brief Article

Just after the announcement, the Commission confirmed that it was in discussions with the French authorities on the recapitalisation plan that the group was putting in place. The competition authorities are looking to establish that this plan does not involve any more State aids and are checking the intervention methods of the various actors, especially the public authorities. Since that time, Bull's management has been engaged in a plan for a capital increase from France Telecom and the Japanese group NEC. The plan also involves giving back 90% of the aid, which must be reimbursed following the company's next results. One of Commissioner Mario Monti's arguments to convince his fellow Commissioners to take the Bull case to Court was that the group was only planning a partial reimbursement. Recently, Bull's MD, Mr Pierre Bonelli suggested that he was optimistic regarding his negotiations with the Commission. In any case, the IT company has several months of respite. Such cases do not tend to...