For the purposes of this Chapter:

service of general economic interest

means, for the European Union, a service that cannot be provided satisfactorily and under conditions, such as price, objective quality characteristics, continuity, and access to the service, consistent with the public interest, by an undertaking operating under normal market conditions. The operation of a service of general economic interest must be entrusted to one or more undertakings by the state by way of a public service assignment that defines the obligations of the undertakings in question and of the state.