EN Official Journal of the European Union C 232/44

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on Transforming the digital dividend into social benefits and economic growth and A public-private partnership on the Future Internet

(2010/C 232/08)

I. POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

Comments applicable to both communications

1. welcomes the Commission's communications on Transforming the digital dividend into social benefits and economic growth and on A public-private partnership on the Future Internet, given that utilising the digital dividend and developing the Future Internet can make a major contribution to bridging the digital divide and achieving the objectives of the Lisbon strategy and its successor, the EU 2020 strategy, while meeting some of the key social, cultural and economic needs of the people of Europe;

2. has previously highlighted on several occasions that a lasting digital divide causes social exclusion and economic disparities. Achieving equal opportunities in terms of digital access and skills is thus a social and economic necessity;

3. would also reiterate that e-inclusion is of crucial importance in achieving the goals of the i2010 initiative (1) – aimed at A European information society for growth and employment – and thus in attaining the Lisbon goals (2) on socio-economic development;

4. emphasises that the requirement for affordable broadband access is essential for social and territorial cohesion and economic growth as well as for e-inclusion across the EU, particularly at this time of deep economic and social crisis;

5. notes that as a service comparable to utilities such as water and electricity, broadband is now increasingly seen as another such utility (3); it should therefore be available at a reasonable cost for all EU citizens;

6. stresses the importance of local and regional authorities – as recognised in the i2010 strategy for a European information society – as they are the driving force of economic growth at local level and generate, use and own many digital information products and services; in certain Member States they are also the competent authorities in this field. Local and regional authorities should be fully and effectively involved in the governance of the information society (4);

7. thus emphasises the key role and responsibility of local and regional authorities in helping to ensure equal and affordable broadband access in areas where the market fails, in leading pilot projects aimed at bridging the e-accessibility gap, and in developing new approaches towards people-centred public e-services (2);

8. takes the view that local and regional authorities should participate in wide-ranging cooperation to improve the interoperability of public administration and the effectiveness of public service delivery (5);

9. advocates that Europe's full potential for developing ICT services in the public and private sectors be fully exploited, and thus that ICT be used as a means of improving local and regional authorities’ services in fields such as healthcare, education, public order, security and social services. EU-backed public-private partnerships among local and regional authorities and ICT-development SMEs in the area of public ICT services can serve as an excellent cornerstone for building up local skills and knowledge across the EU (6);

Specific comments on the Commission communication on ‘Transforming the digital dividend into social benefits and economic growth’

10. shares the Commission's view that the switchover from analogue to digital terrestrial television in Europe will free up highly valuable radio frequencies due to the greater efficiency of digital broadcasting transmission. This digital dividend has great potential for the provision of a wide range of services, as the radio signals in this range travel far and the equipment can be easily used indoors. The Committee is therefore convinced that this represents a unique opportunity for Europe to meet the growing demand for radio spectrum, particularly to provide wireless broadband to rural areas, thereby bridging the digital divide, and to stimulate the take-up of new wireless services such as the next generation of mobile broadband, as well as to support the development of terrestrial broadcasting;

The digital dividend as an instrument of economic development

11. notes that, according to the study commissioned by the Commission on Exploiting the digital dividend – a European approach, between EUR 150 billion and EUR 700 billion of total value could be generated across the EU from the digital dividend over a 15-year period; in this context, underlines the fact that, according to the recently amended provisions of the common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services (7), radio frequencies are a public good with an important social, cultural and economic value;

12. notes that access to the digital dividend will facilitate broadband service delivery throughout the EU, thus helping to complete the single market in electronic communication services, and thereby constituting a major element of the productivity and competitiveness of Europe's economy;

The digital dividend as a tool to bridge the digital divide

13. is convinced that a lasting digital divide stands in the way of creating and maintaining social cohesion and prosperity and causes social and economic exclusion; in view of this, the i2010 initiative should help to improve the quality of life for individuals and society in general (2);

14. would again highlight the difficulties the markets have in providing affordable high speed broadband networks to certain geographical areas; thus calls on the Commission to promote the use of the freed-up spectrum and to develop policies and guidance that acknowledge market failure and facilitate state and public sector initiatives to develop open networks functionally separated from services in such areas (3);

Opening up the spectrum – the advantages for the development of public services

15. reiterates that access to high-quality wireless broadband at reasonable prices can increase the accessibility and quality of services provided by local and regional authorities while making it easier for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to offer their products for sale. Remote regions and communities, especially the outermost ones, are expected to benefit considerably from more widespread and faster access to broadband services (8);

16. believes that the use of the digital dividend should enable so-called ‘e-government’ services to be developed, encompassing areas such as: user-administration relations; the contribution of administrations to fostering public debate (dissemination of essential public information, public forums, online consultations, and more broadly, new public consultation mechanisms); dealings between companies and the administration (social data notifications, recruitment notifications, transfers of tax and accounting data); the application of e-commerce techniques to the public procurement sphere (e-procurement); and the new work and organisation methods within administrations (job transformation, cooperative working, teleworking). The use of the digital dividend could thus offset the difficulties arising from the remoteness of rural areas, through better communication between the administration and users – both private and commercial;

17. stresses that one of the main focuses of the economic modernisation objectives of European cohesion policy for 2007-2013 is on making Member States, regions and cities more attractive through accessibility and the provision of services which are of an adequate standard. The Committee feels that these efforts support the development of e-government services and foster the growth of the knowledge economy by boosting research and innovation capacities (2);

A coordinated approach at EU level

18. notes that – according to the aforementioned study on Exploiting the digital dividend – a European approach – appropriate European coordination of the digital dividend spectrum as a whole, if achieved before 2015, would increase its potential economic impact by an additional EUR 20 to 50 billion over 15 years, depending principally on the actual level of future demand for services such as advanced terrestrial broadcasting and wireless broadband;

19. also notes the fact that both the CEPT (9) (European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations) and the RSPG (10) (Radio Spectrum Policy Group) have stressed that any harmonised approach should be non-binding; several reasons support this view: differences between countries as regards size and topography, levels of competition with other service provider platforms, such as satellite or wired networks, and the use of spectrum in neighbouring countries that are not part of the EU. The Committee also believes that, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, it is up to the Member States – or to local or regional authorities with competence in this field – to decide on the particular use to be assigned to a radio-spectrum sub-band. It recognises, however, that there needs to be coordination of the technical conditions of use at EU level, so as to maximise the economies of scale for investment and ensure efficient use of the spectrum;

20. therefore thinks that taking a harmonised approach to the digital dividend is justified, provided that it is non-binding and takes account of the specific features of the Member States and the policies that they intend to implement. The Committee thus welcomes the Commission's intention to adopt a decision on harmonised technical conditions of use for the 800 MHz sub-band, while not obliging Member States to open the sub-band for new uses other than broadcasting uses;

The digital dividend and national media policies

21. notes that Community policy on the digital dividend will have an impact on Member States’ media policies, particularly with regard to the development of digital terrestrial television. Each EU Member State currently has a comparable number of national television coverage slots, but the impact of allocating a sub-band of radio frequencies to non-broadcasting services will vary across the Member States, thus endangering the principle of equitable access to the spectrum for each Member State. The Committee therefore believes that Community policy on the digital dividend needs to take account of this issue, and to ensure that all Member States have equivalent capacities to pursue their national policies concerning the development of digital media;

22. emphasises the vital role of media services in promoting cultural diversity, pluralism and participatory democracy and in building and strengthening the identities of local, regional and national communities within Europe. It notes that terrestrial television is still the primary method of providing such services to the public, and acknowledges people's needs and expectations with regard to the diversity of programmes, the quality of services and mobility, and the need for value-added services also to be provided via terrestrial platforms;

The digital dividend and town planning and environmental protection policies

23. notes that using the digital dividend for wireless communications will require more antennas than broadcasting does, which could have an impact on town planning and the environment, and that it is usually local and regional authorities that are responsible for such matters. It therefore draws attention to the need to strike the right balance between the inevitable rolling out of new networks and the exercise of these powers;

Specific comments on the Commission communication on a public-private partnership on the Future Internet

Research and development

24. praises the Commission for its commitment to further supporting research and technological development on the Future Internet through the seventh Framework Programme (FP7), beyond the current outstanding achievements, and recommends using the CIP programme, which is an excellent platform to promote the roll-out of future Internet applications. More specifically, as the Committee has stated in previous opinions (11), it calls for the coordinated use of the seventh research framework programme (FP7), the structural funds (SFs) and the competitiveness and innovation programme (CIP), as this is essential to the competitiveness of the EU and the synergy between cohesion, research, higher education and innovation policies at national and regional levels (6);

25. notes that there is a general lack of coordination in certain sectors, such as education, innovation, research, investment and the marketing of innovative ICT solutions. In this regard, the concept of user-driven innovation can serve as a key tool for improvement, which is being used in more and more regions and cities across Europe and has proven to be a central driver of R&D investment and market entry for new innovations. It therefore recommends that this concept should be given greater prominence in the European Commission's communication (6);

26. once again underlines the importance of closely linking R&D and industrial practices, and therefore urges the Member States and the Commission to make every effort to promote the rapid transfer of research into daily commercial and public practices (6);

27. points out that local and regional authorities can create an innovative research environment and explore new avenues for institutional cooperation between the public and private sectors and cross-border regional cooperation. In addition to investment by local and regional authorities, this also requires financial support from Member States and the EU (12);

Interoperability

28. notes that the development of interactive platforms, such as Web 2.0, has become more useful nowadays owing to their complex functions of information sharing and advanced interoperability between a large number of networks and the options they provide for the creation or supply of content, either by individuals or through cooperative or collective formats; in this context, the rapid development of mass storage technologies is vital for public administrations’ databases, which will contain the descriptions of the objects identified by their Internet address (13);

29. feels that the success of the efforts to facilitate the emergence of markets for innovation and achieve interoperability and common standards depends on the continued support and participation of national, regional and local authorities, and that these efforts should be supplemented by actions at regional and local level;

Data security and privacy

30. feels that, when building the infrastructure of the Future Internet and developing the services it carries, it will be crucial to ensure that all security requirements at every level are met to ensure optimum levels of privacy and protection of personal data and prevent any unauthorised tracking of any kind of personal information and profiling, including shopping preferences, medical status, health records, etc. (13);

31. believes that protecting people's privacy depends on certain factors, including the structuring of public sector bodies (the majority of which are at local level), the convergence of EU legislation, the fostering of an innovative culture among public authority officials, including through the use of a common code of ethics, and the management of ICT-based applications (13);

32. calls for extensive training for all staff, particularly aimed at specialist technicians (in e.g. networks, systems, security, privacy, etc.), staff working directly with security procedures involving different methodologies and staff generally or indirectly involved in innovation and modernisation drives (e.g. teaching digital literacy to consumers) (13);

33. points out that it has already recommended strengthening and giving new impetus to preventing, tackling and resolving network security problems in good time, a task which is promoted by the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) (2);

The need for joint action at European level to develop the Future Internet

34. welcomes the Commission's intention to involve the Future Internet Forum (FIF) in implementing the proposals set out in the communication, in so far as it is necessary to coordinate activities at European level in order to avoid efforts being too scattered and to establish shared objectives of public interest. Given that local and regional authorities are important players in the development of the Future Internet, the Committee feels that they should have the option of participating in the FIF, and calls on the Commission to make proposals to this end.

Brussels, 15 April 2010 The First Vice-President of the Committee of the Regions Ramón Luis VALCÁRCEL SISO

(1) COM(2005) 229 final.

(2) CdR 5/2008 fin.

(3) CdR 304/2008 fin.

(4) CdR 247/2009 fin.

(5) CdR 10/2009 fin.

(6) CdR 156/2009 fin.

(7) Directive 2009/140/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2009, OJ L 337, 18.12.2009.

(8) CdR 252/2005 fin.

(9) CEPT Report 22 – Report B from the CEPT to the European Commission in response to the mandate on ‘technical considerations regarding harmonisation options for the digital dividend’, 1.7.2008.

(10) RSPG opinion on EU spectrum policy implications of the digital dividend, 14.2.2007 – RSPG opinion on the digital dividend, 18.9.2009.

(11) CdR 263/2007 fin.

(12) CdR 84/2007 fin.

(13) CdR 247/2009.