39As a preliminary point, as regards the definition of the activity at issue, it should be observed that, according to Article 1 of the contested decision, the activity at issue consisted in the deployment, maintenance and operation of the DTT network in Area II by the Autonomous Communities, public undertakings and municipal authorities. In so far as the Kingdom of Spain emphasizes the fact that their only interest was to respond to the needs of the local population since it was necessary to ensure television coverage in that area, it should be observed that, in State aid matters, the objective pursued by State measures is not sufficient to exclude those measures from classification as ‘aid’ for the purposes of Article 107 TFEU. That article does not distinguish between the causes or the objectives of State interventions, but defines them in relation to their effects (see judgment of 22 December 2008 in British Aggregates v Commission, C‑487/06 P, ECR, EU:C:2008:757, paragraphs 84 and 85 and the case-law cited). The Commission therefore did not err in relation to the definition of the activity at issue.
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