ABSTRACT
When Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber intoned against the threat of Le défi americain (The American Challenge), he struck a theme which has persisted in the composition of industry policy by the Commission of the European Community ever since. That theme orchestrates the need to create European solidarity against the external challenge, later augmented by the Japanese menace, in particular by promoting the creation of effective European champions to counter the invasion.1 Research and development initiatives (such as ESPRIT, which seeks to exclude non-European players), concessions under Competition Policy to certain European co-operative arrangements, and efforts to promote restructuring in declining industries, can all be seen dancing to this tune.
