Serving citizens' interests has been the driving force behind the EU's digital agenda since Kroes started with her new mandate earlier this year.
''My priority is to work together at the heart of Europe to ensure that information technology improves our daily lives – for citizens as well as businesses,'' she stressed.
One of her main tasks is to implement a digital strategy with key sector guidelines for 2010-2015. The agenda will be featured as one of the 'flagship initiatives' under the Commission's proposed 'Europe 2020' strategy, aimed at lifting the EU out of recession.
Providing all European citizens with high-speed Internet access, creating a single digital market, reinforcing online security, fostering research and innovation – these are all part of the agenda.
According to the Commission, the text should be unveiled at the end of April or the beginning of May. For now, the EU executive is not giving any indications about its content.
Commission draft
However, a draft version of the plan – revealed by specialist website PC INpact – places great emphasis on interoperability and the notion of open standards.
''The headline target for this action area is to reform the EU standardisation regime by 2015 to reflect the rise and growing importance of ICT standards developed by various fora and consortia, in particular as regards the Internet,'' the Commission draft says.
But while there is consensus that greater interoperability of ICT systems stimulates economic growth and makes digital solutions cheaper for small business, ''guidelines on open standards and interoperability have proved hard to define,'' the Commission adds.
Interoperability is the ability of computers or digital systems to exchange and use information with one another. Lack of interoperability of Microsoft software and servers, for instance, was at the centre of an antitrust case brought forward by Neelie Kroes in 2008 when she was heading the Commission's competition department (EurActiv 22/02/08).
As a solution, Kroes wants to ''reform the governance system for ICT standards in Europe to recognise ICT fora and consortia standards''. She also recommends ''transparent disclosure rules for intellectual property rights (IPR) and licensing conditions in standard-setting'' as a way to ''lower royalty demands for the use of standards,'' in particular by SMEs.
Lobbying battle
''This version is nearly the best, it's the version we would like to keep,'' said Edouard Barreiro, representative for electronic communication at French consumer association UFC–Que Choisir.
Yet the consumer group fears that the drive for interoperability may be dropped in Kroes's final draft. Together with free software campaign group April, UFC–Que Choisir denounced intensive lobbying by proprietary software companies for Kroes to dilute the interoperability plans.
''These topics could be eluded from the Union's digital policy agenda if too vague notions are adopted,'' warned Barreiro, pointing to Microsoft as one of the companies leading the campaign against exacting interoperability standards. Contacted by EurActiv France, Microsoft France did not react.
Commenting on previous efforts to introduce a European Interoperability Framework (EIF), CompTIA, a global ICT industry group with member companies such as Microsoft among its members, said it was ''concerned about the proposal's promotion of ICT standards and development models that reject valid intellectual property'.'
UFC–Que Choisir also pointed to internal conflicts within the Commission, with the enterprise directorate-general irritated that Kroes's information society department has taken sole ownership of the issue.
