Tag: ICT

The EU needs to tackle discrepancies between the proposed Data Protection Regulation and the 2002 ePrivacy Directive because they could create inconsistent privacy experiences and rights for consumers, say trade organisations representing the mobile and ICT sectors.

Europe has failed to create the right "ecosystem" that would encourage the creation of new ICT companies and sub-sectors, holding back the continent's post-crisis recovery, says a new study from the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel.

EU scientists and member states will decide over the next six months which future high-tech industries – from a choice including robot servants and nano clothing – should receive a €1 billion European funding boost.

It is not by making new regulations that policy-makers will force ICT companies to reduce their carbon footprint, but rather pushing member states to implement existing rules and convincing companies that they gain in competitiveness, argues Marc Van Wesemael, EURid CEO, in an interview with EurActiv.

Chinese and European businesses need to find new ways of strategic co-operation, says Huawei’s regional boss in an interview with EurActiv. Kevin Tao is confident that his company can take on incumbents in key ICT markets, but identifies network security as a common challenge affecting all players.

European institutions and governments should throw their weight behind joint procurement of computing services to encourage the use of cloud computing, says Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes.

Microsoft and Google are developing web platforms combining the roles of social media and search engines – ‘social search’ – in moves that reveal a raging battle to harness cloud computing and combine the web’s most popular functions.

Over 3,000 mayors teamed up yesterday (30 November) in efforts to demonstrate that energy efficiency targets could be implemented through a bottom-up approach, despite stagnating talks on a proposed EU energy efficiency directive.

A new EU task force met for the first time on Tuesday (10 May) on the fringes of eHealth week in Hungary to assess the role of information and communications technologies (ICT) in health and social care.

If the EU does not solve the e-skills gap, fewer engineers on the market will likely keep salaries high and slow down the digital development in Europe and prevent small and medium size companies to compete in the global economy, said the head of cabinet for EU Information Society Commissioner Neelie Kroes yesterday (4 May). 

Information and communication technology (ICT) is a vital component for the delivery of modern health care and ICT tools can play a key role in making patient care more efficient and streamlined, according to a March report by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

Leading associations in the field of information and communication technologies (ICT) have teamed up to measure the sector's energy consumption and coordinate action on deploying technologies that contribute to the EU's climate and energy goals.

Brussels-based ICT federations are in the middle of a public procurement battle with China as the country is pursuing a "protectionist" new law favouring home-grown technology over foreign innovation, according to industry insiders.

Millions of Europeans face being locked out of the jobs market in five years time due to their lack of ICT knowledge, according to a new report which claims 90% of jobs will require computer skills.

Potential cost-savings from e-health are being jeopardised because computer systems cannot talk to one another, according to experts. Healthcare IT specialists also warn of resistance from healthcare workers and patients amid ongoing concerns over data protection.

Corporations will pump billions of euros into e-health R&D in a bid to steal a march on competitors in a sector expected to be a major driver of economic growth, Pamela Passman, corporate vice-president at Microsoft, told EurActiv in an interview.

"The Swedish EU Presidency has a unique opportunity to set the agenda for integrating policies for economic recovery, the knowledge society, and energy and climate security into a single framework for smart, green growth," writes Peter Johnston, chair of the European Policy Centre (EPC), in a July paper.

Information and communication technologies can help curb global warming, but the sector is also coming under growing pressure from the EU to lead by example by cutting its own emissions, which are now comparable to that of the aviation sector.

The European Commission wants the ICT sector to cut its CO2 emissions by 20% before 2015 in exchange for the benefits the industry is expected to reap from EU legislation on smart technologies to tackle climate change.

Video-conferencing and other teleservices can bring public administration closer to the citizen, save time and reduce travel's carbon footprint, argues a recommendation addressed to Finland's public administration.

Life scientists need to turn to ICT experts for computational modelling to simulate how living systems work and make new discoveries, argues a biologist in an interview with EurActiv.

The EU executive has launched a public consultation on ICT research and innovation, asking industry, experts and policymakers to help it overhaul the bloc's agenda in this field.

The rapid uptake of computers, mobile phones and the Internet in the emerging world is set to double the industry's CO2 emissions by 2020, according to the first comprehensive study on the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on the world's climate.

The hot topics in European economic policy - such as the global credit crunch, global warming and energy - are drawing focus away from the important European ICT sector, warns Professor Martin Fransman of the University of Edinburgh in an 8 May opinion piece for ScienceBusiness.net.