Sodišče je navedlo, da "javna podjetja, ki jim države članice podelijo posebne ali izključne pravice, ne smejo niti sprejemati niti ohranjati veljavi nobenih ukrepov, ki bi bili v nasprotju s pravili iz Pogodbe, ki se nanašajo na konkurenco", in da je treba takšna pravila "razumeti v povezavi s členom 90(2), ki določa, da za podjetja, ki opravljajo storitve v splošnem gospodarskem interesu, veljajo pravila o konkurenci, kadar uporaba takšnih pravil pravno ali dejansko ne ovira opravljanja posameznih nalog, ki jih imajo". Komisijo so zato že večkrat vprašali, kakšno stališče namerava zavzeti glede uporabe pravil o konkurenci, ki jih vsebuje Pogodba, glede ravnanja poštnih operaterjev in glede državnih ukrepov, ki zadevajo javna podjetja in podjetja, ki jim države članice dodelijo posebne ali izključne pravice v poštnem sektorju.
The Court stated that 'in the case of public undertakings to which Member States grant special or exclusive rights, they are neither to enact nor to maintain in force any measure contrary to the rules contained in the Treaty with regard to competition` and that those rules 'must be read in conjunction with Article 90(2) which provides that undertakings entrusted with the operation of services of general economic interest are to be subject to the rules on competition in so far as the application of such rules does not obstruct the performance, in law or in fact, of the particular tasks assigned to them.` Questions are therefore frequently put to the Commission on the attitude it intends to take, for purposes of the implementation of the competition rules contained in the Treaty, with regard to the behaviour of postal operators and with regard to State measures relating to public undertakings and undertakings to which the Member States grant special or exclusive rights in the postal sector.