(Telecompaper) The Italian government has notified Telecom Italia (TIM) that Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni signed a decree activating the so-called "golden power" rule of 2012 that allows the state to intervene in strategically important companies. The government's unprecedented move to apply the golden power comes after Italian markets watchdog Consob ruled that France's Vivendi had "de facto control" of TIM via a 24 percent stake and two-thirds of the company's board.