(2) In accordance with Article 14(2) of the Treaty, the internal market comprises an area without internal frontiers in which the free movement of goods and services and freedom of establishment are ensured.
The development of fair commercial practices within the area without internal frontiers is vital for the promotion of the development of cross-border activities.
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(4) These disparities cause uncertainty as to which national rules apply to unfair commercial practices harming consumers' economic interests and create many barriers affecting business and consumers.
These barriers increase the cost to business of exercising internal market freedoms, in particular when businesses wish to engage in cross border marketing, advertising campaigns and sales promotions.
Such barriers also make consumers uncertain of their rights and undermine their confidence in the internal market.
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(5) In the absence of uniform rules at Community level, obstacles to the free movement of services and goods across borders or the freedom of establishment could be justified in the light of the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Communities as long as they seek to protect recognised public interest objectives and are proportionate to those objectives.
In view of the Community's objectives, as set out in the provisions of the Treaty and in secondary Community law relating to freedom of movement, and in accordance with the Commission's policy on commercial communications as indicated in the Communication from the Commission entitled ‘The follow-up to the Green Paper on Commercial Communications in the Internal Market’, such obstacles should be eliminated.
These obstacles can only be eliminated by establishing uniform rules at Community level which establish a high level of consumer protection and by clarifying certain legal concepts at Community level to the extent necessary for the proper functioning of the internal market and to meet the requirement of legal certainty.
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(7) This Directive addresses commercial practices directly related to influencing consumers' transactional_decisions in relation to products.
It does not address commercial practices carried out primarily for other purposes, including for example commercial communication aimed at investors, such as annual reports and corporate promotional literature.
It does not address legal requirements related to taste and decency which vary widely among the Member States.
Commercial practices such as, for example, commercial solicitation in the streets, may be undesirable in Member States for cultural reasons.
Member States should accordingly be able to continue to ban commercial practices in their territory, in conformity with Community law, for reasons of taste and decency even where such practices do not limit consumers' freedom of choice.
Full account should be taken of the context of the individual case concerned in applying this Directive, in particular the general clauses thereof.
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(16) The provisions on aggressive commercial practices should cover those practices which significantly impair the consumer's freedom of choice.
Those are practices using harassment, coercion, including the use of physical force, and undue_influence.
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