http://europa.eu/rap...n.htm?locale=en
For instance:
The Communication stresses that private individuals, as the final users of these cross-border services, can cite the free movement of goods and services, fundamental principles which must be directly applied in national law. In addition, the right to receive information via satellite dish is related to the fundamental right to freedom of expression, which is established by the European Convention on Human Rights.
The right to a satellite dish
The Communication should make it possible to eliminate a number of existing restrictions (and prevent potential ones) on the use of satellite dishes, thus avoiding new infringement procedures. By stating users' rights to own a satellite dish, the Communication provides an illustration of how the principles of freedom of movement in the internal market are of direct, tangible benefit to consumers. The authorities in the Member States, whether at national, regional, provincial, communal or other level, must therefore ensure the primacy of Community law and full respect for the freedoms which it lays down.
In particular, the Communication gives a series of clarifications and specific information regarding the various types of restriction which have, on numerous occasions, been drawn to the Commission's attention by private individuals and by written questions and petitions from the European Parliament. It stresses that the following national restrictions are incompatible with the free movement of goods and services:
Technical barriers
Regulations on the characteristics of satellite dishes can hinder not only the movement of goods but also the movement of the services which they carry.
Administrative obstacles
It is not acceptable to make the installation of a satellite dish subject to systematic prior authorisation or completion of a complex and expensive administrative procedure.
Architectural and town-planning obstacles
Concerns of an architectural and town-planning nature, which are often cited in this context, can be met by solutions which make it possible, where necessary and technically feasible, to minimise the visual and aesthetic impact of satellite dishes without impairing quality of reception, under reasonable conditions and at reasonable cost; such solutions can, for example, involve the location of the dish (indoors rather than outdoors) or the type of dish (e.g. a collective dish rather than numerous individual dishes).
Tax obstacles
The Commission reiterates its opposition to taxes which are specifically targeted at satellite dishes. It has already expressed its opposition as part of infringement procedures for violation of Article 49 of the Treaty (free movement of services); it recalls the case law of the Court of Justice, which has upheld private individuals' right to obtain reimbursement of such taxes from their national courts, subject to the formal and substantive requirements of national law. Moreover, independent of the right to lodge a complaint or obtain a refund, a tax collected in violation of a fundamental freedom under Community law may cause the Member State in question to become liable.
Obstacles to freedom of user choice
The choice of technology, like the choice of services, rests entirely with the user. It is therefore unacceptable to influence such choices, for example, by penalising or otherwise discouraging the use of satellite dishes, or requiring satellite dish users to receive particular services or channels.
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It goes on, deeper and further:
"Moreover, as the Court of Justice has repeatedly pointed out, it is not only the actions of public authorities which must not restrict this fundamental freedom, but the same principle also applies to other kinds of rules aiming to regulate service provision collectively. In fact, removing obstacles to the free movement of services, a fundamental objective of the European Union, would be compromised if the obstacles to be removed were only those set by the state and did not include those resulting from the exercise of their legal autonomy by associations or organisations which are not governed by public law (see, inter alia, the judgments of 12 December 1974, Walrave, 36/74; 9 June 1977, van Ameyde, 90/76; 14 July 1976, Donà, C-13/76; 15 December 1995, Bosman, C-415/93, and 13 April 2000, Lehtonen, C-176/96).
Finally, in the above communication on satellite dishes, the Commission confirmed that any obstacles to freedom of choice, discrimination between the alternative means of receiving services, or indirect restrictions on the right to use a satellite dish would be unacceptable. It would thus hardly be acceptable to require individuals to receive television broadcasts by cable distribution rather than by satellite dish.
The ability to install a satellite dish may not be hindered by excessively onerous arrangements for installation and use which would have the effect of restricting individuals’ ability to receive all the broadcasts of their choice, still less by a general ban or a refusal with no reason given or on the grounds of, for example, aesthetics or technology."
http://www.europarl....13/617113en.pdf
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Case Law:
http://www.thelocal.se/16542/20081223/
EU court orders compensation for satellite dish eviction
Published: 23 Dec 08 14:27 CET
The Swedish state has been ordered to pay compensation to a couple in Västerås by the European Court of Human Rights after they were evicted from their Stockholm flat over a satellite dish dispute.
Adnan Khurshid Mustafa and Weldan Tarzibachiwere have been awarded the sum of €10,000 ($13,950) plus interest in compensation by the court against the Swedish government.
The court found the Swedish government liable for having failed in "their positive obligation to protect" the couple's "right to freedom of information" as enshrined in article 10 of the EU Convention on Human Rights.
The court ruling has effectively established that the possession and use of a satellite dish for the purposes of exercising one's right to freedom of information is a human right.
Many more already won - from Germany onwards...
http://eur-lex.europ...01DC0351:en:NOT