22.2.2014

Official Journal of the European Union

C 52/25

(Case C-568/13)

2014/C 52/45

Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellant: Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Careggi-Firenze

Respondent: Data Medical Service srl

Questions referred

1.Does Article 1 of Directive 50/1992, read also in the light of the later Article 1(8) of Directive 18/2004, preclude a national rule which was interpreted as excluding the appellant in the present proceedings, by dint of the fact that it is a commercially-run hospital characterisable as a public economic entity, from participating in tendering procedures?

2.Does European Union law on public procurement — in particular, the general principles of freedom of competition, non-discrimination and proportionality — preclude a national rule under which a body like the appellant hospital, which receives public funding on a permanent basis and is directly contracted to provide a public service, is able to derive from that situation a decisive competitive advantage over rival economic operators, as demonstrated by the size of the discount offered, in circumstances in which corrective measures have not been put in place at the same time in order to prevent that kind of distortion of competition?

Council Directive 92/50/EEC of 18 June 1992 relating to the coordination of procedures for the award of public service contracts (OJ 1992 L 209, p. 1).

Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (OJ 2004 L 134, p. 114).