A task force representing all sectors of the industry, academics, consumer advocates and trade unionists will draft a report on how to foster the growth of Europe's Information and Communication Technology industry.
Prior to setting up the task force and laying down its mandate, the Commission consulted a number of ICT sector trade and industry associations, namely BSA, ECTA, EICTA, ESA, ESIA, ETNO and ObjectWeb. Jointly, they have identified the following topics as central for the ICT sector's growth:
Information Society Commissioner Viviane Reding said: "The ICT industry is crucial to Europe's economic recovery, and a strategic, market-oriented co-operation of the EU institutions with the private sector is the key to its successful development. With the ICT Task Force, we want to ensure that Europe’s ICT industry keeps its leading role in the world. Jointly, we will focus our work on facilitating cross-border competition in Europe, on removing barriers for a true internal market for online content services, and on combining more effectively public and private research efforts to spur ICT investment."
Enterprise Commissioner Günter Verheugen said: "Industrial policy should not disturb well-functioning markets, pick winners, be protectionist or take over industry's role. The Commission’s new industrial policy is about improving framework conditions across industrial sectors in different policy areas: for example research and innovation, trade, environment, public procurement, education and training. Targeted sectoral actions complement our framework policy approach, working with the markets and stakeholders via high-level groups and task-forces, such as this ICT task force."
ICT is a key technology in the EU's Jobs and Growth agenda, for two main reasons:
But the industry is also under big pressure from its offshore competitors in North America and South-East Asia. Since protectionism is not a choice, the Commission is looking into ways of fostering the industry's growth. DG Information Society and DG Enterprise have taken the lead. They have decided to set up a task force which should, within the next six months:
The task force is part of DG Enterprise's New Industry Policy initiative and compliments DG Information Society's i2010 initiative.
