Press Release: State aid: Commission endorses measures to finance early retirement scheme for Spanish public broadcaster RTVE

The European Commission has decided that the Spanish state financing of early retirement and other lay-off measures of public broadcaster RTVE is in line with EC Treaty state aid rules. As part of the reorganisation of the public broadcasting system, the Spanish authorities decided to establish a new corporation, RTVE, which started operating on 1 January 2007 with a significantly reduced workforce. The Commission concluded that the financing of this early retirement scheme would allow the new RTVE to provide a more cost-efficient public service and would consequently reduce the overall level of public support.