European forum to address obstacles to e-business

The European e-business interoperability forum will open on 18 February 2004 with the aim of removing the obstacles to a widespread adoption of e-business in Europe. The forum will seek support and cooperation from stakeholders across the board, including industry, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), public sector and consumer associations.

E-business interoperability simply means the ability to exchange and process information between consumers and companies. However, the organisers of the forum say this requires more than mere technical standards. Their approach will also be to define the common business processes at the root of the technical standards that are expected to emerge from the forum.

One of the key functions of the forum will be to provide the Commission with policy advice on the implementation of the e-Europe 2005 Action Plan with respect to interoperability issues. It will be made up of many technical groups working on specific issues.

The e-business interoperability forum is established until the end of 2005. It is expected to adopt a work programme of issues to address within the first six months of its launch.