Press Release: State aid: European Commission clears France’s Carte musique to encourage legal downloads of music

The European Commission has approved, under EU state aid rules, a French scheme that subsidises legal downloads of music by French residents aged 12 to 25 years. The measure is aimed at combating illegal downloads and, thus, at creating the condition for an increased offer of music and lower prices for consumers. The Commission found the measure to be in line with EU rules allowing the fostering of general interest goals. In particular, the measure is well designed to achieve its objective, is limited in time and scope and contains safeguards to limit potential distortions of competition.