EU unveils five-year digital economy plan

Welcoming the Commission's plan, German liberal MEP and European Parliament Vice-President Silvana Koch-Mehrin (ALDE), who takes a close interest in the digital economy, said: "It is good that Commissioner Kroes has quickly come through with this important and comprehensive document. The text makes very clear that Europe now needs impulses for growth that may derive in particular from the digital economy. We have to intensively explore new sources to boost the economy, therefore the European Union should take coherent action, e.g. by the creation of a digital internal market."

"A fully functioning single market would benefit consumers and businesses by bringing wider choice, lower prices and higher broadband speeds," said Hubertus Von Roenne, chairman of ECTA, the European Competitive Telecommunication Association.

Commenting on the European Commission's Digital Agenda, Frédéric Donck, director of the European Bureau of the Internet Society (ISOC), said: "This eagerly awaited first flagship of the Commission's 2020 strategy includes welcome moves on interoperability and network confidence."

"In addressing the issue of cyber security, we would encourage the European Commission and European member states to focus primarily on enforcing laws that already exist in the non-digital world rather than focusing on creating new legal systems that only address criminal behaviour in cyberspace. European policymakers and governments should also work with the Internet community to ensure that users have the information and skills they need to use the Internet safely and within the law," Donck's statement continued. 

"We are actually delivering ultra high-speed broadband networks today and see a quickly expanding reach among our 72 million customers across Europe. We want to reach more citizens and the EU wants us to as well," said Cable Europe President Manuel Kohnstamm.

"We share these strategic goals with the Commission, and we'll keep up the pace for Europe's digitisation. Our continued network investments keep pushing the competition," Kohnstamm said. 

"The whole Digital Agenda is the partly the equivocal result of ongoing tensions within the Commission, but it also reveals intense pressure coming from corporate lobbies. While parts of the agenda are somehow disappointing for open standards and free software users, the proposals are quite encouraging overall," said Jérémie Zimmermann, spokesperson for citizen-advocacy group La Quadrature du Net. 

"That said, the Digital Agenda is not binding for the future of EU legislation. It should be an invitation for every citizen to ensure that this constructive document turns into a continued commitment to the public interest. We congratulate Ms. Kroes and hope that she will be able to stand strong against special interests in order to pave the way for a true knowledge society, respectful of people's fundamental freedoms," Zimmerman added. 

The European Committee for Interoperable Systems (ECIS) also welcomed the Commission's tough stance on creating interoperable standards in ICT. "As our name suggests, interoperability is a central tenet of our group," said Thomas Vinje, counsel and spokesman for ECIS. 

"We're pleased the European Commission has given broad support to interoperability, and gratified it believes government acquisition of software should adhere to open standards," Vinje added. 

Bridget Cosgrave, director-general of trade group DIGITALEUROPE, responded by saying: "The Digital Agenda for Europe together with the 'Europe's Digital Competitiveness Report' published this week by the European Commission, are required reading for all ministers in all member states."

"Alongside budget-cutting programmes, we should be seeing digital agendas from every EU head of state," said Cosgrave.

Ross Biggam, director-general of the Association of Commercial Television Europe, said: "There are very important policy initiatives laid down in the document, on which we are very much looking forward to working with the EU institutions. In particular, we look forward to the opportunity of explaining to the Commission, in the context of the new Green Paper on Audiovisual Content, how copyright is evolving – as indeed it has done for the past 300 years – to meet the new technological challenges."

Jonathan Zuck, president of the Association of Competitive Technologies, stated: "Developing European digital services and products is crucial. European SMEs are not only users but often pioneers in developing new and original services which are critical for EU employment, competitiveness and growth. If we talk about our digital future, then innovative SMEs have to be a focal point. Policies should protect users and consumers, but also promote the innovative creators behind successful technologies."

"ETNO applauds the focus on the need to accelerate the deployment of fast and very fast fixed and wireless broadband access networks and to reinforce incentives for private investment," said Michael Bartholomew, director of the European Telecommunications Network Operators association (ETNO).

"The forthcoming NGA Recommendation should now reflect the priorities of the Digital Agenda by allowing for a more targeted regulatory approach for next generation access networks. Any regulatory approach to NGA should take into account the high investment risks, the varying levels of competition in different geographic areas and promote a fair sharing of risks between investors and access seekers," added Bartholomew.  

The European Broadcasting Union welcomed the Commission's plan to simplify copyright clearance, management and cross-border licensing.

"The modernisation of the current copyright clearance system for audiovisual media would encourage innovation and ensure that audiences can legally access media content on a range of new digital platforms, therefore facilitating the development of a successful Digital Agenda," the EBU said.

When updating the existing framework, the EBU urged the Commission to adopt a sectoral approach respecting all rights holders.

"It is with great interest and anticipation that we take note of the European Commission's plans to put interoperability, inclusion and consumer trust at the centre of the Digital Single Market," said Stephen Russell, secretary-general of consumer group ANEC.

"In particular, we welcome the adoption of the principle of 'privacy by design' to ensure the fundamental rights of privacy and data protection are respected," Russell added.

"It is a well-structured plan that recognises the role of all stakeholders in delivering the Digital Agenda," said Martin Whitehead, director of the European association for the mobile telecommunications industry, GSMA Europe. 

"In particular at this point in time, we would like to re-emphasise the need to fix a date for EU countries to commit to the harmonised release of the 790-862 MHz digital dividend band for wireless broadband services – as this will provide one of the key building blocks to helping the digital economy flourish," Whitehead added.