eEurope - An Information Society for All[en] 

In December 1999 the Commission launched the  e Europe initiative to bring the benefits of the Information Society to all Europeans. This was followed in June 2000 by the  e Europe 2002 Action Plan, agreed by heads of State and Government in Feira setting out a roadmap to achieve  e Europe's targets.

At the Seville Council (21 June 2002), heads os states endorsed the objectives of the Commission's  Action Plan for  e Europe 2005 as "an important contribution to the [EU's] efforts towards a competitive, knowledge-based economy", and called upon "all institutions to ensure that it will be fully implemented by the end of 2005". Until  e Europe's aims are achieved the EU's priorities will stay focussed on a sound legal framework for converged communications services and e-commerce, innovative and qualitative content for new interactive services and creating a skilled population.

To achieve the above objectives the  e Europe action plan has 10 action lines 

• Cheaper and faster Internet access  [FR]  [DE]  : main issue here is the implementation of the new regulatory framework for electronic communications infrastructure and associated services (see EurActiv's LinksDossier on the  )
• Faster Internet for researchers and students  [FR]  [DE]  : main aim is upgrading the existing linkages between European research networks, as well as further research on new approaches such as 'World Wide Grid technology'.
• Secure networks and smart cards  [FR]  [DE]  : main issues here are Internet security solutions, the development of common specifications for smart cards and a common approach to cybercrime
• [FR] [DE] is about adapting the EU's education and training systems to the knowledge economy and digital culture.
• Working in the knowledge-based economy  [FR]  [DE]  : under this action line EU proposes to promote life-long learning, to establish a European diploma for basic IT skills and to set up public Internet access points.
• Participation for all in the knowledge-based economy (eAccessibility)  [FR]  [DE]  : several actions to promote "Design for all" approaches and the adoption of 'Web Accessibility Initiative guidelines' for public websites.
• Accelerating e-commerce  [FR]  [DE]  :  e Europe proposes to adopt e-commerce legislation and promote self-regulation, establish electronic marketplaces for public procurement and encourage SMEs to "Go Digital"
• Government online: electronic access to public services  [FR]  [DE]  : online access to government and Commission services and wider use of electronic signatures and open source software. ("from in line to online").
• Health online  [FR]  [DE]  : t he main issue under this action line is the implementation of an infrastructure to provide for medical care, disease prevention, and health education on-line. Sub-targets to achieve this are a set of quality criteria for health related websites, best practices in  e Health, a series of data networks to assist healthcare planning in Member States and a communication on legal aspects of  e Health.
• European digital content for global networks  [FR]  [DE]  : a co-ordination mechanism for digitisation programmes of European heritage across Member States is proposed and the launch of the  e Content programme to support the production and dissemination of European digital content (see EurActiv's ).
• Intelligent transport systems  [FR]  [DE]  : this action line proposes to establish the Single European Sky and to decide on the further development of Galileo, the EU's satellite navigation system.

The  Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (UNICE) in February 2002 called on ministers to redifine Europe's future strategy for the Information Society beyond 2002, as UNICE believes that a lot remains to be done: cheap, fast and secure Internet access for all is not yet a reality in Europe. It therefore urges Member States to take appropriate actions to: promote the take-up and roll-out of broadband in Europe, demonstrate their commitment to effective and full liberalisation of telecommunications, stimulate full participation by SMEs in the e-Economy, seek to increase Internet penetration, provide stakeholders in e-commerce with legal clarity and security, improve the security of information infrastructures and combat computer-related crime while refraining from doing so at the expense of industry and/or at the expense of fundamental rights such as the right to privacy. 

The  EU Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) overall is positive about  e Europe, but encourages the Commission and Member States to show the political will to achieve the set goals, to commit the necessary financial resources, to consider the international dimension of their policies, to maintain an open and transparent decision-making process and adopt a flexible regulatory approach that is technology neutral.

The  European Information and Communications Technology Industry Association (EICTA) in addition to the 10 priorities of the  e Europe programme suggests to emphasize the importance of R&D as a key driver of industry competitiveness worldwide.