Water, energy, health, telecoms and transport are among the most widely-known examples of services that public authorities consider of general interest and subject to specific public service obligations.
With full postal-market liberalisation due in 2011, the Commission wants to guarantee that European citizens continue to enjoy the right to a full universal service. A variety of financial-support mechanisms have been suggested, but many fear that none will appropriately ensure the same level of service as the current monopoly system.
