Annexes to COM(2002)263 - EEurope 2005: An information society for all - An Action Plan to be presented in view of the Sevilla European Council, 21/22 June 2002 - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2002)263 - EEurope 2005: An information society for all - An Action Plan to be presented in view of the Sevilla European Council, 21/22 ... |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2002)263  |
| date | May 28, 2002 |
Health information networks. By end 2005, Member States should develop health information networks between points of care (hospitals, laboratories and homes) with broadband connectivity where relevant. In parallel, the Commission intends to set up European-wide information networks of public health data and co-ordinate actions for Europe wide rapid reactions to health threats.
Online health services. By end 2005, Commission and Member States will ensure that online health services are provided to citizens (e.g. information on healthy living and illness prevention, electronic health records, teleconsultation, e-reimbursement). Some of the health and related preventative services (e.g. air and water quality online information) could be expanded to a trans-European level through the eTEN programme. The Commission will monitor actions taken by Member States to make health information as accessible as possible to citizens as well as initiatives to implement quality criteria for web sites.
3.1.2. A dynamic e-business environment
Starting point
e-business comprises both e-commerce (buying and selling online) and restructuring of business processes to make best use of digital technologies. Since the publication of the e-commerce communication in 1997 [21], the Commission has developed a comprehensive policy in this field. Among the achievements have been the rapid adoption by the EU of a series of directives [22], which are aimed at establishing an Internal Market for information society services, as well as a number of non-legislative initiatives aimed at promoting self-regulation, notably in the field of "e-confidence" and online dispute resolution (ODR) [23], and the launch of the 'Go Digital' initiative to help small and medium-sized enterprises to better use e-business. In addition, the tax environment of e-commerce has been adapted and simplified, mainly through the adoption of a directive on electronic invoicing [24] as well as a directive and a regulation on VAT on digital supplies [25].
[21] A European Initiative in Electronic Commerce, COM(1997) 157 final of 16.4.1997.
[22] Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on electronic commerce, OJ L 178 of 17.7.2000, Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 1999 on a Community framework for electronic signatures, OJ L 13 of 19.1.2000, Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the Information Society, OJ L 167 of 22.6.2001, Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts, OJ L 144 of 4.6.1997.
[23] The Commission has established an alternative dispute settlement network - the EEJ net - in order to utilise and promote dispute resolution mechanisms for resolving consumer-business disputes cross border throughout the EU.
[24] Council Directive 2001/115/EC of 20.12.2001, OJ L 15 of 17.1.2002.
[25] Council Regulation (EC) No 792/2002 of 7.5.2002, OJ L 128 of 15.5.2002 and Council Directive 2002/38/EC of 7.5.2002, OJ L 128 of 15.5.2002.
The Commission has also launched [26] a debate on the future of consumer policy, regulation and its enforcement. It highlights the need to eliminate regulatory distinctions between the on and off-line world and for future regulation to be created in such a way that it neither becomes redundant or stifles innovation and new technology.
[26] Green Paper on consumer protection 2001 COM(2001) 531 final, follow-up Communication currently under preparation.
Building on the European Competitiveness Report [27] and on the Communication on the e-economy [28], the Commission is working in co-operation with Member States to support e-business in Europe. The goal is to promote take-up of e-business with the aim of increasing the competitiveness of European enterprises and raising productivity and growth through investment in information and communication technologies, human resources (notably e-skills) and new business models, whilst ensuring privacy. eEurope 2005 will be instrumental in making this policy work.
[27] Commission Staff working paper: European competitiveness report 2001, SEC(2001) 1705.
[28] The Impact of the e-Economy on European Enterprises: Economic Analysis and Policy Implications' - COM(2001) 711 final of 29.11.2001.
Proposed actions
Legislation. The Commission, in co-operation with Member States, will review relevant legislation where appropriate with the aim of identifying and removing factors that prevent enterprises from using e-business. This review will in particular aim at extending existing e-commerce friendly rules to the off-line delivery of goods and services in order to create a level playing field between the different trading modes (on-line/off-line). The review, open to all interested parties, will be kicked off with an e-business summit in 2003, giving high-level business representatives the opportunity to describe difficulties encountered when doing e-business.
SMEs. By end 2003, the Commission intends to establish an European e-business support network, federating existing European, national and regional players in this field with a view to strengthening and co-ordinating actions in support of SMEs in the field of e-business. The Commission will foster geographical and sectoral clusters of SMEs working online to encourage innovation in e-business, sharing of good practice and promotion of guidelines and standards.
e-skills. By end 2003, the Commission, in close co-operation with Member States, will publish an analysis of the supply and the demand for e-skills in Europe. The Commission and Member States should foster public-private partnerships and the co-operation of stakeholders with a view to developing European-wide e-skills definitions.
Interoperability. By end 2003, the private sector should, supported by the Commission and Member States, have developed interoperable e-business solutions for transactions, security, signatures, procurement and payments. This will facilitate services enabling seamless, secure and easy cross-border electronic business and mobile commerce.
Trust and confidence. By end 2003, the Commission, together with the private sector, consumer organisations and Member States will examine possibilities of establishing a European-wide online dispute resolution system. To facilitate cross-border electronic transactions for SMEs, the Commission will further support the establishment of online information systems on legal issues. The Commission will work with stakeholders on trustmarks requirements with a view to a recommendation on consumer confidence in electronic commerce.
The ".eu company". By end 2003, the Commission will examine the possibilities to provide European companies with additional functionalities linked to the .eu domain name such as a trusted cyberidentity and other supporting operations, e.g. trustmarks and an authentication scheme.
3.1.3. A secure information infrastructure
Starting point
The European Union has already launched a comprehensive strategy based on the Communications on network security [29], cyber crime [30], and the current [31] and forthcoming data protection directive regarding electronic communications. The suggested approach was endorsed and further developed by the Council Resolution of 28 January 2002 [32] and by the recent Commission proposal for a Council Framework Decision on attacks against information systems [33].
[29] Network and Information Security: Proposal for A European Policy Approach, COM(2001) 298 of 6.6.2001.
[30] Creating a Safer Information Society by Improving the Security of Information Infrastructures and Combating Computer-related Crime, COM(2000) 890 of 22.1.2001.
[31] Directive 97/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on 15 December 1997 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the telecommunications sector, OJ L 24 of 30.1.1998.
[32] http://register.consilium.eu.int/pdf/en/01/st15/15152en1.pdf
[33] http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/justice_home/index_en.htm, COM(2002) 173 final of 19.4.2002.
Based on the 28 January Resolution, a number of initiatives (e.g. the establishment of a cyber security task force, awareness campaigns, promotion of good practices, and improved exchange of information mechanisms) should be completed by the end of 2002. This will provide the basis for the work towards a secure information infrastructure. Work on the creation of a secure European smart card infrastructure should continue and the roll-out of applications be intensified.
Community research activity on security will continue under the Sixth Framework Programme. Priorities will be: trustworthy network and information infrastructures with an emphasis on emerging technologies (e.g. broadband, wireless architectures, ambient intelligence); the identification of vulnerabilities and inter-dependencies in infrastructures. It also intends to support standardisation with a view to wider use of open standards and open source software. Research activities should also take into account the 'human factor' in security, e.g. basic security standards, user-friendliness of systems.
Proposed actions
Cyber security task force (CSTF). By mid 2003, the CSTF should be operational. Based on a proposal which the Commission intends to submit in 2002, Council and Parliament will be able to adopt the necessary legal base as quickly as possible, taking into account the cross-pillar dimension of network and information security. Member States and the private sector should support the activities of CSTF. It should become a centre of competence on security questions, e.g. to develop with Member States a concept for a European computer attack alert system; to facilitate cross-pillar discussion; to improve trans-border co-operation.
'Culture of security'. By end 2005, a 'culture of security' in the design and implementation of information and communication products should be achieved. The private sector should develop good practices and standards and to promote their consistent application. The Commission intends to support projects and will work to raise awareness of security risks in all users. An intermediate report of progress made will be issued end 2003 and a final assessment by end 2005.
Secure communications between public services. By end 2003, the Commission and Member States will examine the possibilities to establish a secure communications environment for the exchange of classified government information.
3.1.4. Broadband
Starting point
Governments world-wide are increasingly realising that broadband access will be central to the economic development of their countries. Wide availability of broadband communication would have a significant impact on the economy, and several EU Member States have started reviewing broadband development on their territory. Their common objective is to accelerate its deployment. The importance of 'widespread availability and use of broadband networks throughout the Union by 2005' has been recognised by the Barcelona European Council. The actions proposed in this Action Plan correspond to this priority.
Investment in broadband will mainly come from the private sector. In its broad economic policy guidelines, the Commission recommended that "Member States should: ... ensure effective competition in local telecommunication networks (the 'local loop') in order to speed up the development of the European broadband network". Competition is expected to drive investment, generate innovation and lower prices. Therefore, public policy should focus on issues where competition is not effective or where political objectives, e.g. territorial coverage with a view to cohesion, need to be ensured.
The new regulatory framework, which will be applied in all Member States from July 2003, takes full account of the convergent nature of broadband. Encouraging efficient investment in infrastructure (by new entrants and incumbent operators) and promoting innovation are explicit objectives for regulators. This means taking account of the need for investors to obtain an adequate return on their investment, in the light of the risks taken. This also means that regulatory uncertainty for investors must be reduced as much as possible.
In the wider context of the European Research Area project, the Commission is supporting the full exploitation of broadband networks by the research community. This will continue under the Sixth Framework Program using the new priority instruments of Networks of Excellence and Integrated Projects. In specific terms, it will support the upgrade and efficiency of technology for optical fibre access networks, mobile broadband wireless services (beyond 3G), broadband access satellite systems (also taking into account the needs of the Galileo system), convergence of fixed and mobile networks, including the transition to the next generation Internet Protocol (IPv6) and take account of security and privacy issues (wireless, always-on) etc. The Commission has already set out the steps needed to support the next generation Internet in its IPv6 Communication [34], "Next Generation Internet - priorities for action in migrating to the new Internet protocol IPv6" and those recommendations should be followed up.
[34] COM(2002) 96 final of 21.2.2002.
A broadband strategy will have a complex task as it is affected by many different policies: town and country planning, research policy, taxation and regulation. They are carried out at all levels: international, European, national, regional and local, and by a range of different actors, private sector as well as public sector. The Commission will deepen the analysis of policy options and existing obstacles to broadband deployment, in particular with a view to widespread access to new services through open platforms in digital television and 3G, in line with the request from the Barcelona European Council
Proposed actions
Spectrum policy. The Commission will use the new regulatory framework for radio spectrum policy to ensure spectrum availability for, and efficient spectrum use by, wireless broadband services (e.g. W-LANs) and to co-operate with Member States' with regard to the introduction of such services. The Commission will initiate a discussion on new approaches to spectrum valuation and trading of rights-of-use of frequencies.
Broadband access in less favoured regions. Member States, in co-operation with the Commission should support, where necessary, deployment in less favoured areas, and where possible may use structural funds and/or financial incentives (without prejudice to competition rules). Particular attention should be paid to outermost regions.
Reduce barriers to broadband deployment. Member States should ease access to rights-of-way, poles and conduits to facilitate investment, for instance through the removal of legislative barriers. The Commission will support this by encouraging and organising exchange of local and regional experience and private/public partnerships.
Multi-platform content. Public authorities in Member States and the private sector should aim to offer their content on different technological platforms, such as interactive digital TV, 3G etc. The Commission intends to support demonstrations and research projects. The Commission will identify regulatory obstacles to the use of digital television for interactive services [35].
[35] As has been requested by the Barcelona European Council.
Digital switchover. In order to speed up the transition to digital television, Member States should create transparency as far as the conditions for the envisaged switchover are concerned. Member States should publish by end 2003 their intentions regarding a possible switchover . These could include a road map, and an assessment of market conditions, and possibly a date for the closure of analogue terrestrial television broadcasting which would enable the recovery and refarming of frequencies. National switchover plans should also be an opportunity to demonstrate a platform-neutral approach to digital television, taking into account competing delivery mechanisms (primarily satellite, cable and terrestrial).
3.2. Development, analysis and dissemination of good practices
In all areas of eEurope 2005, commercial and public applications are being developed, support programmes are running, and experimental applications are being tested. These activities are a rich source of knowledge and expertise. Progress is rapid but uneven, for example one administration or school may be trying to develop or use an application already working somewhere else or for which there is a viable private sector solution.
eEurope 2005 aims to build upon these experiences. It will not only identify and exploit good practices, but further advance them to act as a showcase which will be instrumental to the achievement of the eEurope targets. Good practice activity will therefore be complementary to the policy actions. A three-step approach is proposed:
i. Examples of good practice will be identified, and selected.
The Commission, in close co-operation with Member States, candidate countries, and the private sector, will identify examples of good practice world-wide. This would include practical working examples from the public sector and commercial applications in the areas of the action plan.
ii. Where appropriate, selected good practices will be enhanced to broaden their applicability and an analysis will be carried out to produce a template or guidelines for good practices.
Relevant examples would be extended in scope (e.g. multi-platform instead of single platform or additional users) or complemented by additional developments (e.g. greater functionality or multi-lingual interaction). The demonstration and evaluation aspects of these projects will be reinforced, so that a thorough analysis of the results may be undertaken.
The detailed analysis of good practice should result in templates or guidelines. These provide proven, well-documented approaches to tried and tested applications for e-services. They would be modular and customisable for any particular user and would typically consist of a methodology, an associated set of tools and software in open-source form. This would result in a critical assessment of success factors and lessons of failure, which may lead to transfer and dissemination of good practice across Europe, particularly in the less favoured regions.
iii. The good practices and the results of the project analysis will be disseminated.
For the dissemination of good practices, the Commission in co-operation with the Council Presidencies will organise promotional campaigns covering the EU and candidate countries. This will be based on the following mechanisms:
* Conferences/workshops: The e-government conference with its exhibition of good practice examples is one successful model for an exchange of experience and lessons learnt. An e-health conference which will follow this model is planned for the first half of 2003, as is an e-learning conference and a second e-government conference is proposed for the Italian Presidency. These conferences normally address policy-makers. They will be accompanied by special dedicated workshops which would bring together the actors for the respective strategies. These events will address in detail the good-practice showcases, templates and guidelines.
* Support networks: Results will be disseminated using existing business, academic, research and user networks - e.g. the e-business support networks to the SME's or the European School Net- and other such channels at the European, national or regional levels. Comparable networks will be sought for actors in all eEurope areas. In doing so, the regional and local dimension shall be particularly taken into account, inter alia by maintaining an open dialogue with networks such as TeleCities, Eris@ and Elanet. The new Innovative Actions programmes within the framework of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) offer regions (in particular, less favoured regions and areas under re-conversion) the possibility to test innovative tools and to exchange good practices in regional e-services. This will contribute positively to regional development strategies and thus play an important role within the eEurope 2005 action plan.
* A web site: Links to the good-practice templates and guidelines will be published on a specific web site which will provide tools supporting their use and feed-back mechanisms.
3.3. Benchmarking
Benchmarking of eEurope is a 3 stage process.
i. Definition of indicators
For eEurope 2002, 23 indicators were used. The rationale behind these indicators is to focus on output, i.e. the final objective of policy, not the policy itself (e.g. % household connected to the Internet rather than any measure of local loop unbundling). The objective of benchmarking is policy development and this means it is essential to obtain political endorsement of the indicators [36]. Indicators will need to be updated for eEurope 2005 to reflect the revised political objectives. From 2004 onwards, i.e. after the end of eEurope+, the new indicator list will also serve as a basis in the Candidate Countries. Where appropriate, regional indicators will be developed.
[36] Indicators were endorsed by the Internal Market Council, November 2000 (13493/00 ECO 338).
ii. Measurement and analysis
Internet related statistics soon become outdated and, to retain policy relevance, indicator measurements must be available quickly. Inevitably there is a trade-off between speed and quality. To improve the quality, measurement of eEurope 2005 indicators should make greater use of official statistics from the National Statistical Institutes and Eurostat. To allow for regular and comparable data collection in Member States, a legal base is needed for information society statistics. The Commission will propose this legal base before end 2002.
Analysis of the factors underlying indicator values is a key element in exploiting the data for policy development. The first analysis of eEurope 2002 indicators was given in the Commission benchmarking report [37]. To enable Member States to undertake their own analysis the results are regularly updated on the eEurope web site [38]. The Commission and the Member States will encourage the development of regional benchmarking, especially with less developed regions in relation to the development of national and regional information society strategies.
[37] eEurope Benchmarking Report, COM(2002) 62 final, http://europa.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/news_library/documents/index_en.htm
[38] http://europa.eu.int/eeurope
iii. Policy development
The value of benchmarking to policy development is evidenced by the Commission's Spring Report to the European Council [39] and the Benchmarking report which provided impetus for the eEurope 2005 Action Plan.
[39] "The Lisbon Strategy - Making change happen", COM(2002) 14 and the supporting staff paper SEC(2002) 29 of 15.01.2002.
Benchmarking can be further exploited by exchanging policy good practices. To facilitate this, the Commission will analyse the benchmarking results to identify policy good practices, including regional policies of those Member States, or other countries, with best results in terms of the indicators.
Proposed actions
By end 2002, based on a proposal of the Commission, the Council adopts a list of indicators and a methodology for the benchmarking exercise.
By beginning 2003, the Commission will publish an evaluation of the eEurope 2002 action plan which will build on the first benchmarking report and will provide the analytical basis for progress assessment under eEurope 2005.
The Commission will carry out benchmarking, will publish an interim report early in 2004, and regularly update the benchmarking data on the eEurope web site.
3.4. A co-ordination mechanism for e-policies
Over the recent years many policy initiatives have been launched either as a direct response to the e-economy or to build in an e-dimension into existing policies. Examples at European level are policies such as regional (e.g. support for eEurope in structural funds [40]), development (e.g. dotforce - the G8 initiative), education (e.g. e-learning), employment and inclusion (e.g. employment guidelines), trade (e.g. e-commerce in WTO) and the eEurope+ action plan. At national level equally, many policy initiatives related to the e-economy have been taken. It is not always guaranteed that the various national measures are well communicated at European level. A better overview and an exchange of information between the various actors would enhance the efficiency of e-policies.
[40] A significant amount of structural funds expenditure, around 6 billion euro, has been earmarked for information society actions over the period 2000-2006, mainly on improving digital literacy, modernising public services, promoting e-business and upgrading the digital infrastructure.
For this reason, an eEurope steering group, chaired by the Commission (composed of Member States and candidate countries representatives, the European Parliament, and, where necessary, representatives of the private sector and of consumer groups, and funded by the follow-up to the PROMISE programme), should be established. This steering group would monitor progress of the eEurope action plan with the aim of improving the implementation of eEurope 2005. It would also provide a forum to exchange experiences. It would allow to bring in the private sector and make an early participation of candidate countries possible. The group would in general meet twice a year and with executive level participants to allow a strategic discussion.
3.5 Financing
The action plan sets ambitious objectives and proposes actions that will need significant resources. This will be met by using and, where necessary, re-focussing existing programmes. To finance projects and actions at European level, the Commission will make full use of the eTEN and the IDA programmes. Both programmes are currently being re-orientated to support eEurope objectives. In particular the financial regulation with respect to the eTEN programme would need to be adapted to make this programme an appropriate tool.
The Commission will, where possible, also use available funds of the eContent programme, the follow-up programme of PROMISE [41], the multiannual programme for enterprise and entrepreneurship, as well as the standardisation, the Internal Market and the industrial competitiveness budget lines. The forthcoming eLearning Programme will also support eEurope related activities. The use of funds from these programmes will be in accordance with their legal base.
[41] multi-annual support programme for the promotion of the information society in Europe (http://europa.eu.int/ISPO/promotion/i_promise.html)
IST financed projects have been directly relevant to the eEurope 2002 action plan and the new IST priority in the Sixth Framework Programme intends to continue to finance research and demonstration projects covering these fields, thus contributing (mostly in an indirect way) to the eEurope objectives. .
Proposed actions
By end 2002, Council and Parliament, on the basis of a Commission proposal, should raise the funding ceiling for the implementation phase of eTEN projects from 10% to 30% without prejudice to the other TEN programmes.
By end 2002, Council and Parliament should adopt the proposal for an amendment of the IDA programme to reorient it according to the eEurope objectives.
By end 2002, the Council, on the basis of a Commission proposal and taking into account the opinion of the Parliament, should adopt a follow-up programme to PROMISE and the legal base for the cyber security task force.
By end 2002, the Commission intends to adopt a proposal for a specific eLearning programme.
By end 2002, the Commission will examine the need to adjust the second eContent work programme with a view to eEurope objectives and, if necessary, will make an appropriate proposal.
By end 2003, the Commission will make a proposal for a follow-up programme to the eContent programme.
4. Conclusions
This action plan is a proposal to Member States to take some far-reaching commitments. It is an invitation to the private sector to work with the Commission and Member States to realise the eEurope objectives. It sets out the initiatives the Commission will or is willing to take. Overall the action plan sets the scene for a co-ordinated European policy approach on information society issues. The eEurope action plan has been confirmed as a key element in the Lisbon strategy. If successful, this plan will have a significant impact on growth and productivity, employment and social cohesion in Europe.
One lesson learnt from eEurope 2002 is that it would be useful to review actions during the course of the action plan. This becomes particular important given that several new Member States will probably have to be accommodated during eEurope 2005. Therefore a mid-term review, which would coincide with the proposed interim benchmarking report, presented in advance of the 2004 Spring European Council is suggested.
The European Council in Sevilla is expected to endorse an Action Plan and invite Council and Parliament to adopt as quickly as possible the necessary legal and budgetary instruments to implement it.