Digital
Emerging media policies for EU 2019-24
DISCLAIMER: All opinions in this dossier reflect the views of the author(s), not of EURACTIV.COM Ltd. “Healthy democracies depend on a healthy media sector,” Digital Commissioner Mariya Gabriel told a recent EURACTIV event. Yet, the media sector consistently faces multiple challenges, notably...
Media4EU: Editorial project and research for Erasmus4media
During the #Media4EU editorial series more than 30 media experts from six countries were interviewed about how the sector can overcome its crisis. This LinksDossier refers to all the interviews that have been published, as well as a bibliography of...
New telecoms rules: bringing Europe’s internet up to speed?
The European Commission proposed changes to laws governing telecoms service in September 2016 that will affect how people use the internet and phones around the EU. There’s a lot at stake for consumers, former state-owned monopolies and emerging service providers: the...
Industry 4.0: The future of manufacturing is here
The European Commission is preparing an action plan for publication in April to mobilise an estimated €25 billion to harness the potential of the fourth industrial revolution, euractiv.com has learned.
Cloud computing: Leveraging the digital economy
The migration of computing into a cloud of massive data centres spread all over the world is giving regulators a headache as they find themselves on the back foot of an industry-driven trend.
Cybersecurity: Protecting the digital economy
Online security cannot be taken for granted as hackers and cyber attackers continue to outdo software engineers. Although there are means of beefing up security, including hardware and server backups, remote security controls, filtering and encryption, the scale and risk of attacks is becoming more pronounced and political.
Greening ICT
Investments in information and communication technologies (ICT) are set to double by 2020 across the European Union, to match consumers' ever-growing hunger for online services. But this also comes at a cost for the environment in terms of electricity consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. The European Commission is now openly asking itself whether the industry should be regulated.
Digital agenda: Connecting the EU
High-speed Internet for all - including on mobile phones - and lower consumer prices are the main highlights of the European Commission's digital agenda, a five-year plan to ensure higher connectivity for EU citizens and business.
Cloud computing: A legal maze for Europe
The migration of computing into a cloud of massive data centres spread all over the world is giving regulators a headache as they find themselves on the back foot of an industry-driven trend.
Digital agenda: Connecting the EU
High-speed Internet for all - including on mobile phones - and lower consumer prices are the main highlights of the European Commission's digital agenda, a five-year plan to ensure higher connectivity for EU citizens and business.
The global battle to rule the Internet
Governments, industry and rights campaigners are engaged in a global battle to shape the Internet as formal and informal policies emerge to assert control over an increasingly powerful media.
Policing the Internet?
Policymakers worldwide are at loggerheads over how to crack down on cyber-criminals, unlawful content and illegal downloading. But laws have been slow to arrive as legislators try to reconcile fundamental rights and Internet security.
Child protection on the Internet
The protection of children online has become an EU priority as lawmakers wake up to the risks of social networking sites and ramp up the fight against child pornography.
Advertising and Consumer Rights
Traditionally, EU laws on advertising applied to print and broadcast media, but as adverts increasingly migrate to an unregulated online world, lawmakers and consumer groups are exploring ways to ensure that digital marketing does not infringe consumer rights.
Digitisation of published works
The EU has been busy scanning books and documents to improve citizens' access to culture and history, but its efforts have been overshadowed by Google's commercial push to digitise Europe's book heritage.
EU Communication Policy
Communicating with EU citizens has long been a primary concern of the European Commission, with the need to boost popular trust in the European project becoming more important following the rejection of the EU constitution by French and Dutch voters and more recently rejection of the Lisbon Treaty by the Irish.
eHealth
eHealth, one of the priorities of the EU's i2010 programme to boost innovation and jobs, aims to provide user-friendly and interoperable information systems for patients and health professionals across Europe.
ICT and climate change: Problem or solution?
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.
Copyright protection of online content
As cultural content migrates online on a massive scale, legal battles are multiplying to prevent piracy, protect copyright and make money out of this growing business.
Cities and climate change
Home to 80% of EU citizens and 70% of greenhouse gas emissions, urban areas play a key role in fighting climate change; but cities' access to funding for green policies is proving a major stumbling block.
Media regulation in the Internet age
The fast-moving world of Web-based media has long been defined by a lack of regulation, but as legislators and industry begin to grapple with reigning in the Internet, issues of state aid, freedom of expression and intellectual property have come to the fore.
Sustainable Cities
The climate change imperative has put the spotlight on Europe's cities, which are home to 80% of Europeans and consume a disproportionate share of natural resources relative to their surface area.
Radio Frequency Identification tags (RFID)
Minute tags embedded in many different physical devices link up the material world with the information super-highway. Technological obstacles, regulatory issues and privacy concerns must, however, be dealt with before the technology can be implemented to its full potential.