No C 339/90 Official Journal of the European Communities 31. 12. 91 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision on the dissemination and exploitation of 
knowledge resulting from the specific programmes of research and technological development 
of the Community (*) 
(91/C 339/17) 
On 11 February 1991 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 130 Q (2) of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on 
the abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Energy, Nuclear Questions and Research, which was responsible for preparing 
the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 17 July 1991 in the light of 
the Report by Mr von der Decken. 
At its 289th plenary session (meeting of 25 September 1991) the Economic and Social 
Committee unanimously adopted the following Opinion. 
The Committee approves the proposal for a centralized 
action in principle, and welcomes the Commission's 
initiative in building on the foundations laid by the 
Value Programme. The Committee has a number of 
comments and suggestions concerning the practical 
implementation of the action and its future develop­
ment. 
1. Introduction 
1.1. Experience over the last few years underlines 
the importance of mechanisms for disseminating the 
results of Community research and technological devel­
opment (R & TD) activities throughout society in the 
broadest sense. 
1.2. The importance of these mechanisms and the 
EC's potential contribution to their development are 
recognized in Article 130 G (c) of the Single Act, which 
provides for 'activities complementing the activities car­
ried out in the Member States' in the area of 'dissemi­
nation and optimization of the results of activities in 
Community research, technological development and 
demonstration'. 
1.3. The second paragraph of Article 130 K stipulates 
that the Council shall define the detailed arrangements 
for the dissemination of knowledge resulting from the 
specific programmes contained in the R & TD frame­
work programmes. 
1.4. The third paragraph of Article 4 of Council 
Decision 90/221/Euratom, EEC concerning the third 
framework programme^), states that 'The detailed 
arrangements for the dissemination and exploitation of 
the knowledge gained, in particular the definition and 
implementation of the centralized action, shall be the 
subject of a Council Decision'. 1.5. The general aim of the centralized action is to 
secure the necessary continuity for some of the measures 
carried out under the specific programme for the dis­
semination and utilization of the results of scientific 
and technological research (1989-1992) (Value) (3). It 
also introduces new topics concerned particularly with 
the repercussions of R &TD activities and their results 
on society as a whole. 
1.6. The amendments to the Value programme pro­
posed by the Committee Opinion on the subject (4) are 
to some extent reflected both in the final version of the 
Value programme and in the present proposal; these 
concern inter alia: support for economic and social 
cohesion, consideration of small firms, and the need to 
preserve confidentiality in the dissemination of results 
and coordination between the new programme and 
existing ones dealing with similar activities. 
2. Summary of the Commission Proposal 
2.1. The proposed Decision deals with the definition 
and implementation of centralized action for the dis­
semination and exploitation of findings of the specific 
R & TD programmes provided for in the third frame­
work programme. General arrangements for dissemi­
nation and exploitation of this knowledge are also 
included (Art. 7). 
2.2. The centralized action expands on the activities 
contained in the Value programme (research/industry 
interface), and introduces other new activities relating 
to the interfaces between research and society, and 
between research and the scientific community. 
(!) OJ No C 53, 28. 2. 1991, p. 39. 
(2) OJ No L 117, 8. 5. 1990, p. 28. (3) OJ No L 200, 13. 7. 1989, p. 23. 
(4) OJ No C 337, 31. 12. 1988, p. 12. 
31. 12. 91 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 339/91 
2.3. Activities relating to the interface between 
research and industry include the setting-up of a net­
work of relay stations (*) to promote Community 
research and development (R&D). 
2.4. Activities relating to the interface between 
research and the scientific community are designed to 
apply the disciplines of law, political sciences, social, 
human and economic sciences to research. Logic, semio­
tics, and epistemology will also be used to analyze the 
communication of research. 
2.5. The interface between research and society 
covers measures designed to identify and study the 
impact on society of the new scientific and technological 
knowledge acquired as a result of Community activities. 
The work will be in three parts: assessment of social 
impact; communication with the public and analysis of 
public demand and new requirements. 
2.6. Community expenditure on centralized action is 
estimated at ECU 57 million (1 % of the total budget 
for the third Framework programme), broken down as 
follows: 
— Research/industry interface 70/75 % 
— Research/scientific community interface 15/20 % 
— Research/society interface 15/20 % 
This sum includes staff costs, which have a 6 % ceiling. 
3. General comments 
3.1. Relationship with the Value programme 
3.1.1. In Special Report No 2/91 the Court of Audi­
tors of the European Communities investigated in detail 
the use of Community research results. The Report 
refers to the period before the entry into force of the 
Value programme in September 1989. 
3.1.2. The Report takes a very critical look at the 
activities of the Commission in relation to the following 
objectives: dissemination of knowledge, protection of 
intellectual property and exploitation of findings, and 
makes a large number of suggestions. 
3.1.3. The Commission's replies are appended to the 
Report. It emerges from these detailed answers that the 
Commission intends to take the Court of Auditors' 
(*) 'Relay stations' here means a system of local or regional 
clearing houses for the dissemination of information on Com­
munity R&D. criticisms and suggestions into consideration to a great 
extent in implementing the Value programme and 
drawing up the new proposal for the implementation 
of the centralized action. 
3.1.4. Unfortunately no report on the Value pro­
gramme and the experience gleaned from it is yet avail­
able; such experience cannot therefore be brought into 
play in assessing the current draft Decision on the new 
centralized action programme. The Committee attaches 
high importance to a programme of this kind, however, 
and feels that it should be launched as soon as possible, 
in particular to prevent any interruption of the individ­
ual actions initiated under the Value programme. 
3.1.5. The Committee calls on the Commission how­
ever to apply the experience gained from the Value 
programme as it becomes available and to provide 
details of the learning process in the report scheduled 
for the end of 1992. 
3.2. Scope 
3.2.1. The centralized action applies exclusively to 
the dissemination and exploitation of the results of EC 
R & TD programmes. To this end, data compilation, 
archiving and information systems (Cordis) are to be 
established. In addition, a network of relay stations 
disseminating information on the results of joint 
R & TD is to be set up. 
3.2.2. The Committee suggests that thought be given 
to the following question: Is it sensible to confine the 
scope of such a dissemination and exploitation system 
to the results of EC research, i.e. EC programmes 
part-financed by the Community? In this context the 
following aspects should be taken into consideration. 
3.2.3. Expenditure on joint EC research totals only 
some 2-3 % of the Member States aggregate research 
spending. Accordingly, with certain exceptions, EC 
research programmes cannot and are not intended to 
cover specific research areas exhaustively. Rather, the 
main aim of Community R & TD is, by precise tar­
geting of resources, to integrate overall R & TD activi­
ties in the Community and to act, as it were, as a 
catalyst. 
3.2.4. The Committee therefore feels that a cen­
tralized EC action for the dissemination and exploi­
tation of knowledge derived from R & TD should also 
play a general integrating and stimulating role, not just 
with regard to specific Community programmes, but 
No C 339/92 Official Journal of the European Communities 31. 12. 91 
rather in respect of all R & TD activities in the Com­
munity. The dissemination and exploitation of 
R & TD results across national frontiers should have 
tremendous potential for improving the international 
competitiveness of Community industry. 
3.2.5. Ways need to be found of enabling the pro­
posed centralized action to exert its integrating and 
stimulating effect, and opportunities should be sought 
for co-operation with similar national bodies as well as 
ways of extending this centralized action to R & TD 
results not deriving from specific EC programmes. 
3.3. Guiding principles 
3.3.1. The formulation of the three principles of 
horizontality, internal complementarity and subsidiar­
ity is to be welcomed. The real challenge however will 
be to apply these principles in practice. 
3.3.2. Particularly in the case of internal comp­
lementarity a highly specific approach will be necessary 
in order to avoid either duplication or gaps. This can 
only be achieved by real co-operation between cen­
tralized actions and the specific programmes. 
3.3.3. It should be stated clearly that subsidiarity 
does not just mean demarcating responsibilities of the 
various levels, but also involves calling for co-operation 
between them. Co-operation with local bodies will be 
particularly important in establishing the relay stations. 
3.4. Research-industry interface 
3.4.1. It is important that actions launched under the 
Value programme should be usefully continued and 
appropriately developed. Whatever the degree of flexi­
bility, continuity is particularly important in an area 
like this one. 
3.4.2. The plan to set up a network of relay stations 
must in principle be welcomed. In view of the complex 
structure of the EC in general and EC R & TD in 
particular, it is extremely important that information 
on the results and knowledge derived from EC research 
should be made directly available to the user or 'con­
sumer'. The main target group for information and 
assistance in technical and economic application should 
undoubtedly be the small and medium-sized enterprises 
(SME). 3.4.3. The success of the plan to set up the relay 
stations network will however depend largely on how 
the idea is put into practice. The Commission proposal 
does not provide any hard information on this. 
3.4.4. The density of the network, i.e. the number 
of relay stations, should be an important consideration. 
On the one hand the system must be user-friendly, i.e. 
the relevant relay stations must be accessible to the 
user. This will require a relatively dense network which 
must also be affordable and organizationally manage­
able. 
3.4.5. It is important that the relay stations should 
tailor information to regional and local needs. This 
means that the network must be extremely flexible in 
terms of the tasks, working methods and structure of 
individual stations. Experience in the field of communi­
cations technology should be exploited. Co-operation 
with, and where appropriate, use of, regional and local 
bodies and organizations in the Member States will be 
decisive. Financial considerations alone require this. 
There should, if appropriate, be co-operation with EC 
information offices. 
3.4.6. The Commission proposal says nothing about 
the organizational structure of the relay stations. The 
Committee feels that before the setting up of a whole 
network of relay stations can be contemplated, experi­
ence should be gathered via pilot projects in the various 
Member States under various regional and local con­
ditions. However, the funds earmarked for this purpose 
over the whole life of the action will only be enough 
for a limited number of pilot projects. 
3.5. Research-scientific community interface 
3.5.1. This is a completely new conceptual depar­
ture. The idea is to bring scientific disciplines other than 
the natural sciences/technology to bear on Community 
research. 
3.5.2. This does not however mean that the action 
will cover independent EC-level research in these vari­
ous scientific disciplines. The Committee feels that the 
integrating and stimulating effect of a Community 
action will be extremely important in an area dealing 
with the difficult question of communication not only 
across national frontiers but also across inter-disciplin­
ary boundaries. 
3.5.3. The Committee will follow this new initiative 
with interest and eagerly awaits its results. 
31. 12. 91 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 339/93 
3.6. Research-society interface 
3.6.1. The ESC has on many and varied occasions 
called for the interface between research and society in 
the EC to be made a focus of attention. This innovation 
is therefore all the more welcome. 
3.6.2. The impact of R & TD on society figure more 
and more in political discussions. This involves not only 
the direct effects on health, safety and environment, but 
also social, ethical and legal factors. 
3.6.3. Providing the public with information on 
R & TD is another extremely important aspect. Unfor­
tunately the function, tasks and achievements of Com­
munity research do not appear to have been made 
clear to the public. Thus Community research is either 
completely unknown to them or else, with a few excep­
tions, does not enjoy a high reputation. The public is 
almost entirely in the dark about the integrating and 
stimulating function of EC R & TD, although, apart 
from some important individual results, this is the main 
pillar of Community research. It is to be hoped that 
the new programme will do something about this. This 
would also help to interest more people in exploiting 
the findings of EC research. 
3.6.4. Successful long-term planning of R & TD 
programmes will require analysis of society's demands 
and changed needs. Here too the Committee welcomes 
the initial outline of an initiative. This question has to 
be tackled from the ground up. The Committee doubts 
whether users of the results of past R & TD pro­
grammes are a suitable source of information. 
Done at Brussels, 25 September 1991. 4. Specific comments 
4.1. Budget 
The Committee considers the draft budget appropriate. 
It will enable the actions for continuing and further 
developing the work of the Value programme to be 
financed. There should also be sufficient resources to 
fund the relay station network pilot projects, as well as 
the initial results of the new parts II and III of the 
programme, i.e. the research-scientific community and 
the research-society interfaces. Careful analysis of the 
results of the Value programme and the initial results 
of this programme in the 1992 interim report will deter­
mine how the future development of this centralized 
action is assessed. 
4.2. Article 3 
Unfortunately, we have to point out yet again, that, as 
well as the Council and the Parliament, the ESC must 
also be sent the reports (see Art. 3). The subjects 
involved make it particularly important that the Com­
mittee be kept fully briefed and that it be actively 
involved in the discussions. 
4.3. Articles 4, 5 and 6 
As the centralized action is now to have a Management 
Committee (Art. 2, Procedure III (a), Council Decision 
of 13 October 1987 (*), Articles 4, 5 and 6 should be 
reworded accordingly. The Committee calls on the 
Commission to ensure that the reworded text gives 
social groupings a say in the decision-making process. 
4.4. Article 7 
Paragraph 1(c) should make specific reference to the 
objectives of Articles 130 A and 130 F of the EEC 
Treaty, i.e. strengthening the scientific and technologi­
cal basis of European industry and encouraging it to 
become more competitive at international level. 
(!) Council Decision 87/373/EEC laying down the procedures 
for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the 
Commission, OJ No L 197, 18. 7. 1987. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois STAEDELIN