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DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(79)650
Vol.1979/0220

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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(79)650 final
Brussels ,26november 1979
EUROPEAN SOCIETY FACED WITH
THE CHALLENGE OFNEW INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES :
ACOMMUNITY RESPONSE .
COK(79 )650final

EUROPEAN SOCIETY PACED WITH THECHALLENGE OFNEWINFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES
ACOMMUNITY RESPONSE . ^ . •
.SUMMARY
I
1. ACcheir conference inBonn inJuly 1978 ,theHeads ofState and
Government oftheCommunity recognised theneed toidentify new
'sources ofgrowth andemployment tooffset thedifficult adjustments
that traditional industries such ascoal ,steel ,shipbuilding and
textiles arebeing forced toundergo .AtStrasbourg they agreed
that thedynamic complex ofInformation industries based onthenew
electronic technologies offered amajor source ofsuch economic
growth andsocial development andinvited theCommission to .study
thematter and report . '
The following note summarises theanalysis ofthesituation made
-bytheCommission andtheactions itisproposed that -theCommunity
should undertake . , •
THE INFORMATION SOCIETY AND THE IMPACT OFELECTRONIC TECHNOLOGY '
2. Modern European society isalready an ."information society ",which
scientific andintellectual activity ofallkinds ,economic trans­
actions and thewhole pattern ofdaily life onasubtle network of
information * -
3. Thenewfamily ofelectronic technologies istransforming theway
this network ofinformation canwork ,promising toreduce itscost
enormously totransform office work andindustrial production ,nd
tooffer thecitizen a.vast range ofneworimproved goods andsocial
services .Thespeed -andskill with Which these newtechnologies '
aredeveloped andapplied arecritical tothesocial development
- • - • I
ofanymodern community ,totheefficiency andproductivity ofits
industry andservices ,and ,notleast ;'toitsposition andinfluence
intheworld .'

4. The keye tothis transformation ere twotechnological revolutions
that have combined Cochanga radically :ha0Gcnowii.es ©£the «3lpi«Ctfocii<J
world .Thecoat ofcommunicating iabaing dramatically cutbythe
introduction into telecommunications ofdigital ,electronic techniques
(computing methods and technology )andnew transmission techniques
(satellites ,optical fibres ).The cost andavailability ofartificial
intelligence (thepower toprocess therevolution incomponents which
enables thepower ofalarge computer tobecondensed into asingle
chip .
Triese changes mean that virtually every industrial product orpro­
duction process ,from automobiles tomachine tools and toys ,and
very many services areopen toenhancement orimproved efficiency
bytheapplication ofthenew "microelectronic "technology .It
means that distributed intelligence interminals ,computers ,orthe
family television setcanbecheaply linked inEuropean andworld­
wide networks ofgreat power .
THE CHOICES BEFORE EUROPE
5. European society will beobliged toapply these technologies onan
immense scale .They areessential tothecompetitiveness ofits
industry inworld markets andnecessary forthemastery ofthe
information processing and flows that are itslifeblood .Butwhether
theprocess isapainful one ,orapositive one that generates new
economic growth ,,new social possibilities andhope will depend on
how thenewrevolution ishandled ,onthesocial ,industrial and
political choices that aremade .
6. Interms ofemployment ,thenewtechnologies will certainly bring
areduction injobs ofarepetitive nature whether intheoffice
orinthefactory .Thequestion iswhether theindustries and
services oftheCotcnunity cangenerate nawproducts and services
fortheworld market onsuch ascale that thenewjobs crested
outnumber :those lost . -

Interms ofmarkets Europe already provides one third ofthe 26
billion u.a.world market forteleconsounications equipment (growing
bysome 7percent per -year ),26percent ofthe53,3 billions u.a .
market fordata processing systems (growing by17percent peryear ) -
and 19percent ofthe 5billions u.a.world market forintegrated
circuits (growing by25percent peryear ).Thequestion iswhether
this rich andrapidly growing home market andindeed theworld market
asawhole istobelargely supplied from outside Europe orwhether
European industries and services aretotake amajor andgrowing
share . •" •* *
*
Insocial andpolitical terms thenew technologies could offer new
tools forindividual development andexpression ,newpossibilities
for ,small tomedium-sized enterprises /newcommunication facilities
fordistant regions ,newfacilities fortheunderprivileged ,whether
thehandicapped ortheimaobile old .Will they beused forthese
redeeming purposes orasaninstrument forreinforcing central
political orcorporate power T.These question ahev hitherto been
largely debated onanational basis .Since they are ,fundamental
forthefuture ofEuropean civilisation it"stime toaskhow the
Community canhelp toensure apositive answer *
EUROPE AND ITS COMPETITORS
-» v • "•
\ - > V
7* Thepresent industrial scene leaves much tobedesired .Europe 's
intellectual contribution tothenew -technologies isstiil remarkable
butinthecommercial andindustrial field ,,itis~theUnited States
andJapan that lead ....
• - „
1 . *
o. European-owned computer companies command amere 16percent ofthe
world market compared with 73Zfortheamerican industry .In
thekeyperiinformatic area ,theshare ofEuropean -owned companies ,
though creditable ,hasfallen from onethird in1973 toonequarter
in1978 . .

Insoftware andtelecommunications ,theEuropean industry position
isfarstronger andindeed has &substantial export surplus ,but
theEuropean telecommunications industry faces fierce newcompetitive
challenges intheworld market from theUnited States andJapan ;
Ν
while inthecrucial microelectronic component sector ,Europe imports
over 80percent oftheIntegrated circuits which are theadaptable
cudpowerful buildingblocks oftheelectronic age .
ν
Theworld leadership oftheUnited States industry owes much tothe
innovative Continental market inwhich itflourishes ,tothe immense
procurement power oftheUnited States Federal Government (over
20billion u.a .peryear )and themassive financial support which
defence andspace programmes have giveu toresearch -anddevelopment
inall branches ofelectronics .
Japan 'sremarkable progress inworld markets for 1electronic equip­
ment has also been thefruit ofasystematic ,longterm national
'strategy supported bylarge Government funds :thenational plan
fortelecommunications ,thePlan fortheInformation Society (1967 )
which stablished theJapanese computer industry asamajor rival
toIBM (atacost ofsome 400 .million u.a.)and the 200million u.a .
VLSI programme ,supported bytheGovernment and thethree leading
telecommunications andcomputer companies ,which hasenabled Japan
toleapfrog theUnited States inkey areas ofmicroelectronic
technology during thelast five years .* rv
Inthemajor Community countries (France ,UK,Germany )substantial
national aidprogrammes have ,helped toredress thebalance andenable
anational computer industry tosurvive .Thethree leading European
computer companies (ICL ,Siemens ,CII-H3 )and theperiinformatic
industries ofFrance andGermany (terminals ,mini -*computers )have
allreceived substantial aid ,while newprogrammes arenowbeing
developed with theaccent onmicroelectronics ,application ,education
andthesocial impact ofinformatics ;

-5-
12. These programmes ,however ,despite their size ,have notredressed
thegrave imbalance setoutinparagraphs 8to10above .Thetruth
isthat Europe hassofarfailed tomobilise itsmajor asset ,
continental scale .Though itstotal informatics market ishalf as
large asAmerica 's,itisstill divided bydifferent standards and
practices ,anddifferent ways ofsolving thesame application problems
Intelecommunications ,theseparate national monopoly administrations
have developed their owndistinct technologies ,procure largely from
firms based intheir owncountries ,andimplement distinctive tariff
andservice policies oftheir own .Theresult hasbeen that trans­
national business services donot exist ofthe character low cost
. and scale ofthose inthe United States .
13. Europe hasnotsucceeded increating thecommon market ofideas or N
themobility oftalent that exists intheUnited States ;thedifferent
I
national aidprogrammes have fostered competing national enterprises
while leaving keylongterm needs unmet .Europe hasneither the
Continental market ofAmerica nor thecommon strategy ofJapan,' while
thegreat social debate has sofarbeen confined tonational bounds .
THE COMMUNITY RESPONSE ■
14. Afirst political response ,atCommunity level ,tothese challenges ,
wasprovided bythepluriannual programme fordata processing ,adopted
bytheCouncil inSeptember 1979 .Themerging ofinformatics and
telecommunications ,,andthepenetration ofelectronic technology
into industry andevery walk oflife ,however ,require awider overall
approach .Such anapproach does notrequire thecreation ofnew
Community financial instruments .Butthere isaneed tomobilise
andcoordinate theefforts made byMember States andbyspecialized
international agencies within awilder framework ,tomake ii$eofthe
Community' 8normative powers andthepurchasing power ofpublic
authorities tocreate newEuropean markets ,tocatalyse bilateral
andtrilateral industrial collaboration ,toputthenewinformation
.technologies attheservice oftheCommunity itself anditsinstitu­
tions ,andoncertain exceptional occasions ,like thekeysector
v •
ofmicroelectronic technology identified intheCouncil Resolution14.
4

-6-
ofSeptember 1979 ,todavalep common action# .
Above all ,awide debate ianeeded onthesocial implications of
thenew technologies ,supported byamajor effort toensure that
Europe 'sworking population canacquire ,intime ,thenecessary
»
skills .
PROPOSED ACTIONS
15. Itistherefore proposed that theCommunity :
a)develop asocial policy toprepare theclimate iforinnovation ,
and inparticular ,
-pool studies ontheimpact onemployment and other asocial
consequences
-explore with thesocial partners measures such ascollective
agreements ,esigned toensure that innovation isintroduced
inanacceptable way
-establish aprogramme inthekey fields ofeducation ,training ,
anddissemination ofknwoledge ,designed toxeinforce theHefforts
ofMember States inparticular inschools and inindustry itself
b)Use thenormative powers oftheCommunity tocreate ahomogeneous
European public market fortelematic equipment andservices through
Council decisions which
-commit the telecommunications administrations tointroduce common
harmonised services onthenewdigital networks "from TS83 ,-a-ad
topurchase forthem only haraonised equipment from 19&S
-establish theprinciple ofsnopen Casnau&ity Tosrtet for
terminals ,"inwhich private itvckis trye&acompete

-7-
-initiate in1981 afirst phase ofaction bythetelecommuni­
cations administrations toenlarge their potential sources of
'supply atCommunity level ; .
–commit thepublic administrations ofMember States from 1983
tobuyinformatics equipment andsoftware only when itconforms
tocommon standards
c)Promote -aEuropean .information industry by s
. •/ *
-facilitating investment bytheprivate sector mdata bases
and related services
*
-fostering provision ofinformation tosmall andmedium enter -*
prises •
-promoting accessible public data bases ,bycoordination and
'rationalisation between Member States andCommunity action
where appropriate
1 . .
-stimulating worldwide exports ofEuropean information industry
products '• .
d)Foster industrial anduser collaboration by :
* <
-implementing ,asafirst step ,theprovisions forsupport for
applications inthepluriannual programme forinformatics
-providing acatalytic framework foradhoccollaboration between
industrial companies onabilateral ortrilateral basis,' with
aview tospecialisation agreements orjoint development of •
products such asperipherals
-.ensuring that Community industry hasaccess tothelatest micro­
electronic technology inthemid 1980s bypromoting development
ofthekeyequipments andcomputer aided design technologies
inaccordance with theResolution oftheCouncil ofSeptember
11,1979m •

-8-
e}Enhance thevalue ofnational andEuropean programmes inthe
fields ofsatellite communication nddetecting earth resources
by : • ■
-bringing together users toestablish markets
-establishing standard interfaces forearth terminals
-encouraging thetimely establishment ofeffective structures
formanaging theuse ofsatellites onaEuropean scale
-establishing legal andpolicy frameworks which permit themost
effective Community-wide useofnewfacilities such atelevision
satellites ,aswell asinthird world countries .
f)Apply thenewtechnologies totheCommunity itself by
-developing Commission data bases ofgeneral interest andmaking
them accessible tothe outside world via Euronet
-enhancing efficiency bydeveloping anetwork ofnew telematic
services linking theCommunity institutions and themember
governments
Follow-up
Ifthis broad programme ofactions isaccepted bytheHeads of
State ,theCommission will undertake studies ,orput forward
proposals ,where necessary ,andreport back onprogress inMay 1980 .

EUROPEAN aoemv PACED WITH THB CHAI ILENOB ,
OFNEW INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES : .
ACOMMUNITY RESPONSE
• " *,• *
Tablé ofcontents .
FOREWORD
PART ONE :THE JUSTIFICATION ANDAIMS OFACO^IUNITY
RESPONSE
1. Factors xnthe assessment :
1.1 . -Theconvergence between requirements andtechno­
logies :itsimpact onsociety
1.1.1 . Information technologies ,avital field forthe
economic ,social andpolitical future
1.1.2 . Technology 'scontribution tomeeting requirements
1.1.3 . Theimpact onsociety . .
1.2. Theinformation technology market :Europe and
.itscompetitors ...................... ......... .
1.2.1 . The World dimension ofthemarket
1.2.2 . ~TheUnited States ....... ........................ .
1.2.3 . Japan .
1.2.4 . TheCommunity ................................. ,

1.3 . Europe 'slag . 10
1.3.1 . Current approaches andtheir inadequacies ....... .10
1.3.2 . Depressing prospects .. .. 12
2. Astrategy atCommunity level :... 13
2.1 . IsaCommunity framework possible ornecessary ?... .13
2.2 . Implementation ofaCommunity strategy .13
2.2.1 . Companies * 14
2.2.2 . National measures . 14
l
2.2.3 . TheCommunity srole ... 14
PART TWO :THE COMMUNITY 'SRESPONSE INDETAIL ......... 18
3. .Proposals forspecific measures : 18
3.1 . Asocial policy toprepare society forinnovation .18 .
3.1.1 . Forecasting .andemployment :theneed toforesee
difficulties ......... 18
3.1.2 . Training ,thekeytosociety 'sadaptability 20
3.1.3 . .Protection offreedoms ...... 22
3.1.4 . Summary ofproposals 23
3.2 . Thecreation ofaCommunity market through
standardization . 23

c
3.2.1 . Telecommunications ...:.. „ 24
t
»
3.2.2 . Data processing .... ........... „ 26
3.2.3 . Sumroary ofproposals ...... .-r•c e .27 1
3.3 . Developing theindustry andth^market for
information . .»,. 27
3.3.1 . The creation ofafavourable climate 28
3.3.2 . Aid toprivate investors .......................... 28
3.3.3 . .Acceleration ofthe transfer of -ration' to
small andmedium-sized companies ....... 29
3.3.4 . Support forparticular project !;..., 30
3.3.5 . Opening uptheWorld market toEuropean information
' services .. 30 .
3.3.6 ., Summary oftheabove proposals 31
3.4 . 'Development ofindustrial andtechnological .
capacities 31
3.4.1 . Applications andsoftware .... 31 '
3.4.2 . Peripherals :aframework forbilateral of
trilateral collaboration . 33
3.4.3 . ■Microelectronics technology *an*area forkey
•strategic measures .... 33'
*
3.4.4 . Summary ofproposals 35

D
3.5 . Information technology andspace activities ;
the need tocoordinate ..... ....... 35
3.5.1 . Communications satellites inEurope 36
* •.
3.5.2 . Remote sensmg . .....' 37
v3.5.3 . Access oftheEuropean Space Industry tothe
*
World Market * .38
S ' ■ ' •
.S
3.5.4 . Europe 'stechnical resources . ........... 39
• .
3.5.5 . Summary ofproposals ............................... 39
*
3.6 . TheCommunity ,anexemplary centre foran
information system ....... MO
'I .
3.6.1 . The Commission 'srole ..... 40 v
* '/
3.6.2 . Blueprint foraninterinstitutional information
system based onthenewtechnologies ................ 42
3.6'.3 . Projects inthefield ofinternational trade ........ *43
3.6.4 . Summary ofproposals 44
/ ■*..
3.7 . The function of ,the financial instruments ofthe
Community 45
' * . *. • * ■ \
\ • -,
/
Conclusions .« 47
■ANNEXE ;Council Resolution of11September 1979 onaCocnaunity action
promoting microelectronic technology .

' • -. • •' *
European society faced with thechallenge ofnewinformation technologies i.
aCommunity response
*FOREWORD . ^ _ ,
Over thelast five years ,Europe hasceased to,expand asrapidly asbefore
anditsposition intheworld hasundergone arelative -setback' :itsannual
growth rate ,onaverage oneofthehighest among OECD member countries before
1974 ,waslower than that oftheother industrialized countries in1978 .
Theprospects for1990 ,ifthepresent trends continue ,arehardly encourag­
ing .Clear signs that thepopulation isbecoming smaller arecompounded by
uncertainty astothecapacity anddetermination ofsociety intheCommunity
toreact toitsenormous .energy dependence .Aconsiderable effort will have
tobemade fortheCommunity ,itscitizens ,itscumbersome social structures
anditsfragile political balances toreact in .apositive waybyadapting to
theneweconomic and .political realities oftheworld today.'
Theadaptation required isboth internal -from asociety ofplenty butalso
ofwaste toamore sober' andmore interdependent one-andexternal *-from
aheavy structure based onindustrial processing toasystem ofdevelopment
that involves agrowing proportion oftechnology andservices .
This coming change inthetraditional "image oftheeconomy ofEuropean
countries canonly beconceived inthe context ofactions which make themost
ofthepossibilities offered bythecontinental dimension oftheCommunity .
Itwasinthis spirit that theCommission 'sreport onsome structural aspects
ofgrowth (COM(78)255 final )wasconceived ;during theEuropean Parliament 's
_sitting of25April 1979 ,thePresident -In-Officc oftheCouncil recognized
themerit of :

"hving provided food forthought for theEuropean Council ,vhose general
conclusions were essentially thesame asthose oftheCommission "*-
Itisessential that technical creativity andredeployment towards new sectors'
ofactivity canbeexpanded andaccelerated appropriately .TheCommission ,
foritspart must check whether what iscurrently being done intheCommunity
;
inthis sector isproviding adequate preparation for theilong-term ,future ,
and topropose thenecessary measures when discrepancies areobserved between -
theneeds and therealities . . *
This document isdevoted toinformation technologies :this is-afield in-
which amajor revolution istaking place andplaying apart inthepresent -
transformation ofEuropean society .Confronted with this state of;affairs -,,
itisanoverall strategy that will enable Europe totake advantage -ofthe *
benefits which this revolution canbring andtoprevent -theadvent ,of"these
newtechnologies from contributing toitadecline . ..

PART ONE :THEJUSTIFICATION AND AIMS OFACOMMUNITY RESPONSE
FACTORS INTHE ASSESSMENT
Theconvergence between requirements andtechnologies ;itsImpact
onsociety '' * '
'' v ; ' ' ' " ^
Information technologies ,avital field foytheeconomic ,social
andpolitical future
i
Theemployment ofinformation isbecoming one ofthevital factors
ofeconomic activity .Recent surveys indicate that thNtproportion
oftheactive population oftheUnited Spates concerned wit.h the
processing ofsymbols ,hasincreased from 25^to45%since 1940 .
Thife fundamental change canberelated tothe quantitative and
qualitative evolution ofemployment .From ]950 totheendof1977 ,
employment increased intheUSAby53% ,that is,byalmost ,32million ;
however ,only 2.6million ofthese -i.e. 8%-were involved inthe
production ofmaterial goods ;while theother 29million .swelled
theranks ofthetertiary sector . , ^
This development -which ,isalso occurring inEurope andinJapan
-hasbeen made possible bytheincreased -■'toroatioh oi:production
equipment andbytheuseofinformation onthemarket fortheguidance
x *
ofproduction . " , ^
• ' .1 .
Thedecisions ofpublic authorities ,ofundertakings orsocial "
organizations aretoday based ontheanalysis ofaquantity of
information that ,would have been unthinkable several decades ago .
Society requires increasingly expanded public 1services with regard
totheir type andextent .Whether these services concern health,'
education ,safety orurban problems ,they allinvolve theexchange
andtheimmediate andcomplex processing ofavariety ofinformatic ?!,

-4-
Technology 'scontribution tomeeting requirements
There arepotential responses toalltheneeds andresponses already
inpreparation ;therelevant instruments and systems areemerging '
inthecourse ofthesudden burst ofgrowth intheinformation
processing andtransmission technologies ,However ,theinnovations
specific todata-processing andtotelecommunications ,having' taken
separate paths ,will nowhave tobeincreasingly closely integrated
tocope with technological progress .
Thecommon denominator ofthis progress isnowtheassembly ofelec­
tronic components assembled inasingle micro-miniaturized circuit
("chip"),areal miniature computer integrated onasingle board
andmanufactured bymeans ofautomated processes sothat itsmarginal
costs areshowing arapid downward trend .
This growing convergence ofinformation transmission andprocessing
facilities isculminating inasingle technological complex based
onintegrated circuits ,computers ,their environment ,andnewtransmission
techniques .It'isthewhole ofthis complex tbat will meet theneed
tomaster thegrowing volume ofinformation circulating within
society . - "
Several characteristic applications ofthis combination oftechno­
logies (baptised "tdl&natique "inFrance ,from which theEnglish
term "telematics "isderived )arealready atanadvanced stage of
development ,including theelectronic transfer offunds ,electronic .
mail and"bureautique "(office automation );some ofthem first saw
thelight inEurope ,such asViewdata ,which will transform .thetele­
phone andthefamily television setinto terminals ofaninformation -
handling network forconsulting data bases intended forthe .general
public . ' *

The impact onsociety
a)Inaneconomic context ,thedevelopments .outlined below will have
farreaching effects :
(i) They concern asector which islimited buthasarapid /
annual growth :about 15%onaverage .
(ii) Itsmarket isworld-wide and therequirements inthis ;
, field aremanifold andfundamental :collection and
processing ofinformation ,communications ,data ,trans­
mission ,modernization of,industry andservices ,education
research ,health . '
(iii) Thecompetitive capacity ofmost ofourindustries and
services will give rise toimprovements in .productivity
made possible bythese new technologies :thewidespread
useofintegrated circuits means that anyroutine -/
.industrial ,commercial oradministrative process can \
henceforth beautomated atacost that ,inmost cases ,
iswell below the cost ofcurrent manual orsemi-automaticx" i..,
,operations ..
b)Inasocial andcultural context ,telematics will -raise problems
towhich solutions must beprepared atonce :
(i) Thedefence ofthecitizen 'srights with regard tothe ■
• computer . . ' •••
(ii) Employment will experience both adverse and-benef icial
effects ofthis newtechnology ;
Theproductivity ofindustry andservices will greatly
increase and thenumber .ofjobs inseveral sectors will ,
fall ,particularly' unqualified jobs ,hutitcould also
bethebasis foravast range ofnewactivity which will
create newjobs inindustry andservices .
x -

Theextent ofthis evolution andthedifficulty of '
syncronizing theeffects ofitsdevelopment require
immediately both social preparation andother measures ,
including thereorganization ofworking hours .
(iii)Cultural changes :,in.particular ,theaverage level of
technical training andindividual initiative inthe
population will have tobesubstantially improved ,and
this will call forefforts inthewayofeducation
atallages andoflifelong training onascale farbeyond
what isbeing done today .
c)Inapolitical andstrategic context ,theprivate andpublic
decision-making processes will beprofoundly affected bytele­
matics :access toaconsistent set .ofdata (economic ,social , .
demographic ,scientific andtechnical )andtocomputer models
fordecisions will becapable ,according tohow they areused ,
ofincreasing centralization orofproviding important social
openings . . ,
Theinformation technology market :Europe anditscompetitors . '
The world dimension ofthemarket .
Theworld market' ischaracterized byvery high growth rates ,and
theEuropean market accounts foraconsiderable proportion ofit
ineach ofthe sectors involved ::
-theworld market intelecommunications equipment wasassessed
asbeing worth 26.6 thousand million EUA in1977 ,about 20%of
which fell toEurope ,andforecasts oftheannua 11growth rate
point toabout 7%upto1987 ;

-theData-processing(computers ,peripherals andservices )system
market increased from 24000million EUA in1973 to53300million
EUAin1978 ,with anannual growth rate ofabout 20 Ofthis ,
theEuropean market .accounts forabout 29% .
•>"*• .r • -
-theworld market inintegrated circuits hasgrown from
2600million EUAin1976 to5200million EUAtoday ,and ifcis .
anticipated that itwill rise to11000million EUAin .1975
Theannual growth rate ■isclose to25Zand theEuropean market ,
accounts fbr about 25Z ofthe total .
-theworld wide turnover achieved byautomated data services open
tothepublic isoftheorder of2000million EUAperannum and
isincreasing annually by22-23 %.However ,themarket value of' ,
thedata used bycompanies andpublic ccharities fortheir inter­
nalrequirements must be .somewhere between 40and 50000million '
EUA .Inboth instances Europe 'sshare is'toolow ,amounting to
about 25%ofdeclared requirements butonly 15%in ,terms of
services supplied.' ■ ,
.... I
The Ujiited States : -
Theindustry intheUnited States istheprincipal world supplier ^
ithasavast home market which itsupplies almost entirely onits
own .Themain factor inthis growth ^hasundoubtedly been themassive
« . '
orders placed bytheFederal"' Government formore than aquarter of
acentury .Thenumber ofcomputer installations inFederal Agencies '
alone represents more than one-third ofthe otal inthewhole of
the United States .
Inaddition ,theNASA space programme w-:'saspringboard forresearch
anddevelopment onthecomponents and .programmable micro –miniaturized
processors .Thegrea& reduction inprogrammed logic prices isadirect
spin-off andamajor cause ofthecurrent technological revolution
andtheheadway gained bytheuniversal micro-processor andsemi­
conductor manufacturers intheUnited States .

-8-
Inthetelecommunications 6ector ,theAmerican users enjoy arange
ofcheap .rates forlong-distance 'calls combined with theadvantages
ofcompetition between suppliers fortheleasing ofdedicated lines .
The size anduniformity ofthecontinental economy and thetraditional
drive oftheAmerican undertakings ,combined with aconfirmed position
ontheworld market inthecase ofIBM ,open-mi ndedness towards
innovation andthepossibility ofdeveloping newundertakings around
newproducts orprocesses have contributed decisively tothecapacity
oftheindustry tomake full useoftheopportunities presented by
support from thepublic sector .
Inaddition ,tokeep this overall lead ,theDefense Department has
decided onasix-year programme forthedevelopment andproduction
ofvery high-speed integrated circuits (VHSI )with acommitment of
US$200million ,alarge proportion (almost half )ofwhich isear-
Λ .
marked forindustrial equipment .
''ï
Japan : '
Although theJapanese computer industry isnotcomparable inscope
tothat oftheAmerican industry ,itisstarting tomake up .the
ground inaspectacular way .This isaconsequence ofthePlan for •■
theInformation Society established in1967 andadopted bythe
Japanese Government .Initially itwas aprotectionist reaction ,
associated ,with support andpromotion measures aspart ofaconsistent
plan . : •
More recently ,theJapanese Government launched aplan forthe
production ofvery large scale integrated circuits (VLSI )*which
includedasubsidy of30000million Yen (115million EUA)for
theperiod 1976 -1979 .

Inaccordance with astrategy similar tothat which they employed
tocreate specific slots forthemselves inthesteel ,motor vehicle ,
consumer electronics ,etc .•industries ,the industry and theJapanese
government aremethodically preparing togain anincreasing foothold
ontheworld market byensuring both that theproducts offered are
ofahigh technical standard andthat 'the volume ofsale will allow
very competitive prices ."Itcan .consequently beexpected that ,
•within five years ,Japan will have become aformidable competitor
ontheinternational markets 'and that itwill have acquired complete
technological independence -inthemanufacture ofadvanced components .
1.2.4 TheCommunity 1 ; •\'*'
TheEuropean industry (onthebasis oftheworld turnover offirms
inwhich European interests have amajority stake )covers avarying
fraction ofitsmarket : >V v '
-Inthe -large computer industry |itvirtually 'satisfies itsown
needs ,buttheleading firm ofEuropean origin isitieighth place,'
andishardly more than ,one-twentieth thesize ofIBM .TheEuropean
position invery large computers isretreating .
-Inperi-informatics (peripherals ,terminals andmini-computers )i
''even though thesituation isbetter ,thetrend istowards arapid
retreat intheface oftheAmerican mini-computer industry :the .
'share oftheworld market ofmanufacturers ofEuropean origin ■
decreased from one-third in1973 toone-quarter in1978 .
-Where software 1)isconcerned andindata' processing ,Europe
is,however ,making rapid advances ,doubtless because themulti - ,
plicity andthediversity ofthedata-proces&ing equipment and
markets have forced theEuropean data–processing .experts to >give
■- ■full rein to .their ingenuity andimagination .
1)Software :alltheprogrammes andprocesses introduced into acomputer which
enable itto.carry outalogical .sequence ofabstract operations
ondata supplied toit.

-10-
-Intelecommunication ,Europe aposition has uptonowbeen a
relatively strong one .TheEuropean telecommunications industry
supplies 30%oftheworld market ,twothirds ofthis proportion
being accounted forbywholly European companies .
-Inthebasic electronics trade ,Europe 'sposition issatisfactory
but itsretention will depend onitsmastery ofthebasic techno­
logies ,inparticular integrated circuits .
-However ,thesituation giving rise tothegreatest concern involves
theEuropean components .industry ,which inthecase ofintegrated
circuits issupplying barely 10%ofitsmarket ,-even though it
isakeysector which isbeing fully revolutionized .
-Finally ,asregards theinformation industry ,while more than
600data bases ofall types canbeconsulted intheUnited States
through simple access 'systems setupbyindustry ,Europe hasat
present very few .ofth«se services ,many ofwhich areinanycase
ofAmerican origin ;apart from theIRSdata base managed bythe
European Space Agency ,only theDIANE-EURONET ,developed jointly
bytheCommission and thenational Post Offices ,andnowbeing .
put into service forscientific and technical documentation is
onaCommunity-wide scale .
1.3 . Europe 'slag ..
1.3.1 . Current approaches andtheir inadequacies
Inspite ofsuccess incertain areas (software ,services ,terminals ,
office automation -"bureaucratique ",etc..)control over the "tele­
matics system "asawhole isslipping away from Europe toanever-
%
increasing extent .Itwill besome time before theground lost in
c'nelarge computer field ,where 76%ofthemarket isheld byAmerican
firms ,ismade up. .

Neither can itbeguaranteed that ,despite theefforts ofthe -public ,
authorities ,theCommunity will succeed inacquiring asufficiently
solid basis inareas which arebeing developed rapidly ,such as
peripherals ,mini-computers ,integrated circuits . ;
and data bases .
Lack ofsuccess inthese areas could ,moreover ,jeopardize the
integration oF'fhe system intelecommunications equipment where
Europe isstill ahead . .
TheCommission considers ,that^in this field theonly possible
objective must bethat ofbuilding upanindustrial complex capable
ofsecuring ashare atleast aslarge asthat nowheld bythecapital
goods industry inthemarket likely toconstitute inthelong term
bythedeveloping countries while offsetting relative drop that can -
beexpected intheexport ofother goods andservices ;this ^implies
winning back asubstantial share notonly oftheinternal market
butalso oftheworld mafket –ashare that maybeestimated ata
third . . .
Present strategies ,sometimes alternative ,sometimes cumulative ,
according tothecountry concerned ,appear clearly inadequate ,even -
where some tangible andimportant success hasbeen recorded in •
respect ofeach ofthem ..
, - '
-One possible strategy consists mimitating theAmericans and the
Japanese .This strategy offers some short-term advantages ,namely ,
theacquisition ofinformation ,profitability ,etc .Inthelong
term itwill notpermit Europe ,asamere imitator ,totake its
proper share ipthis field . "
V ; »
-Some purely national strategies have been valuable but insufficient
toraise ourundertakings tothelevel oftheworld markets .The'
European states' resources andmarkets arenolonger commensurate
with this technological revolution .

12
Thenational approaches adopted nofar "have been specific and
uncoordinated andhave pursued different andpartial aims ;the
national markets which arelimited insize ,have meant thesupport
ofundertakings which aretoosmall tocompete with American and
Japanese companies ,aprogressive laginthetechnological develop­
ments which determine thefuture ,anddomination -ofthemarket by
America ?andJapanese firms .
\
» ' .
,. •■* '
Depressing prospects '_ ' ,
Ifthepresent situation ismaintained andsupposing theMember
States' budgetary resources enable theefforts mage hitherto to -
bemerely continued,' itisbeyond doubt that theoverall aim
described above will notbeattained .\
♦
..'f *' " ' ■'
Adangerous situation then -theopposite ofwhat theMember States
andtheir industries aretrying tocreate -islikely tocome about .
Domination ofthetelematics industry bytheUnited States andJapan
would ,inthemore orless short term ,result in :
-thefinal loss ofEuropean control over anessential field ;
* _ Μ Λ · 1 – - ·..« .«·-damage tothecompetitive position oftheCommunity both in
Europe andintherest oftheworld ; '
-theloss ofthepotential newjobs ,which should compensate for
loss ofjobs caused bythenewtechnologies ; >
-areduction inourindependence indecision-making inallwalks
ofpublic andprivate life .

ASTRATEGY ATCOMMUNITY LEVEL ■, ■ .
I3aCommunity framework possible ornecessary ? ,
TheStatements bytheFreszdant oftheCommission attheStrasbourg
European Council about theCommission 'sintentions inthis field was
favourably received .Thus thegovernments oftheMember States are ,
aware oftheproblems raised andthey arepr^hared toexamine possible
solutions InaCommunity framework . . * ..' '^ ,
The :Community offers anopportunity tomaximize theresults ofthe
effort involved bywidening thefield ,toacontinental scale .
Consequently ,aCommunity approach might well beconsidered whenever
such acourse wasconsidered possible from both thetechnical and
thepolitical point ofview .However ,an lacarte "formula of
this kind would mean the lose ofvaluable time .Inanarea where
thedecision-making processes come under considerable andcontinuous
pressure from techniques andneeds which areevolving atanexplosive rate
anytime lost represents afactor offailure .Such aformula ., .,;.V
moreover ,would beineffectual since ,inafield ofsuch techno - ;
logical ,,commercial .,economic ,social ,statutory andfinancial ./
complexity ,thechoice ofthewider dimension which theCommunity
represents cannot ,onpain .ofinefficiency ,bedivorced from an
overall strategy . » v s' v-
'Implementation ofaCommunity strategy . .•.* -
■i * *
X V. ^ ''
ACommunity strategy will notnecessarily result intheadoption
ofacommon policy ,managed on *centralized lines andautomatically
backed upbythefinancial instruments .What itwill involve ,how- .
ever ,isthedynamic andoperational integration ofmeasures coming
within theprovince ofthevarious parties ,byth'ecompanies ,national
governments orCommunity institutions .-

Companies •^ .
. - \ '
Therole ofthecompanies ,which isfundamental ,does notwarrant
alengthy description .What matters forthecompanies istooperate
profitably inthemarket and topromote their owndevelopment under
whatever conditions thepublic authorities may laydown .Itis
essential that these conditions beasfavourable aspossible .
National measures . •
Inthepast France ,theUnited Kingdom and theFederal Republic of
Germany have given impressive support totheir computer industries
and they arenowintheprocess oflaunching ambitious programmes
tocope ,onanational scale ,with thesituation described above .
TheFrench plan forthecomputerization ofsociety involves
392million EUAover five years andhasbeen supplemented bythe
decision tolaunch twonational satellite systems (communications
andtelevision ).AGerman outline programme ontelematic systems
andservices isbacked byabudget of -196million EUAover four
years ;this will' becoupled with acomponents programme and anew
programme ontheinformation technologies andtheir social impact
andsupplemented bythedecision tolaunch asystem ofdirect
television transmission bysatellite .IntheUnited Kingdom ,there
isprovision forsupport measures forthemicro-electronic components
sector .Italy hasjust completed its .deliberations onthe "finalized
programme forelectronics "*intheframework ofthelawonindustrial
reconversion andrestructuring ... '" '
From these considerable efforts atnational level significant results
inalarge number of .telematic applications aretobeexpected .
Thenational authorities ,moreover ,play anessential trade-promotion
role through theplacing ofpublic orders .In1978 total Community
orders ofthis kind ,fordata-processing equipment alone ,were worth
asmuch as'thepurchases made bytheUSAdministration .

However ,European information-technology products donothave the
advantage ofavast unified market like theUnited States ,ora
precise strategy like Japan .Only rarely areindustries inthis
sector inaposition toface competition from USandJapanese products
notonly intheexport markets butalso ontheir home ground .
Consequently ,itislikely that ,inasector where ,once thelaunching
costshave been covered ,development opportunities arelargely
conditioned byeconomies ofscale ,theachievement ofthedesired v
results will berendered difficult and ,atallevents ,highly
expensive byvirtue ofthenational dimension ofthepromotional
andmarketing effort .
TheCommunity srole :
1 . '
a)Exploitation ofthecontinental market
National measures will ,therefore ,only becompletely effective
insofar asthey form part ofabroader strategy devised at
Community level ;they will besupplemented where necessary by
.Community action inthemost cases ,..already provided forbythe
Treaty .
TheCommunity sgreatest potential asset istheopportunity it
provides fortheexploitation ofavast market ofthesame
magnitude astheAmerican market ,butfragmented bytechnical
andstatutory barriers ,thedifferent standards governing different
countries andproducers national preferences .anddifferences of
approach . , •
Reducing these obstacles isthe primary task ofthe
harmonizing activity assigned bytheTreaty totheCommunity .
Thepolitical conditions forthesuccess ofthis activity imply
the "definition ofacertain number offunctional principles :

16-
-y*
-Community preference :failure touse this procedure wherever
possible ,inanyofitsvarious potential manifestations
resulting from theCommunity 'sinternational commitments ,means
that thebenefits tobederived from the creation ofthemarket
will beenjoyed byundertakings outside theCommunity ;
" ' * \
-acompetition policy which ,asregards state aidand therules of
competition applicable tocompanies *particularly intheform of
specialization agreements ,will take account oftheobjective
\ .
pursued ;
-using theCommunity 'sfinancial instruments (Social Fund ,
European Regional Development Fund ,NewCommunity Loan Instrument ,
European Investment Bank )while respecting their objectives and
-» ■rules ,supplemented ifnecessary byspecific measures "chargeable
tothe "Community Budget ;
/ . ' '
r /
-ancooperative policy ofpublic sector procurements designed to
/offer undertakings intheCommunity equitable opportunities to
compete inquantitatively andqualitatively significant markets ;
-■JV . '
-lastly ,possible ways ofestablishing transnational projects
could beexamined ,although this would notnecessarily affect all
undertakings orallMember States .
v _ .' I
\ • •
2.2.3 .b)Accep tance ofchange
Thegeneral introduction ofinformation technology will profoundly
alter the conditions inwhich citizens must live and work .
Society will only accept theconsequences ofthis change ,ifit
isgiven themeans ofassessing itssignificance andinfluencing
theplans oftheauthorities andundertakings infavour of '
. . .\ .mankind . .. .

Several Member States have introduced information ,training and
awareness programmes ,,designed tocreate aclimate ofconfidence
andactive support forchange .TheCommunity could take upthese
policies aswell . '

PART TWO :THE COMMUNITY 'SRESPONSE INDETAIL
PROPOSALS FOR SPECIFIC MEASURES
Asocial policy toprepare thesociety forinnovation
Inaperiod ofexpansion marked byreduced employment andgrowth ,the
potentially damaging effects onemployment canonly beattenuated inso
far asthemethods andrate ofintroducing innovation areclearly
determined andagreTd inadvance .
Energetic action istherefore needed inorder tointroduce' thenew
technologies into theindustrial andsocial fabric attherate at
which theworld markets aredeveloping ;equal weight must ,however ,
begiven toinforming thepublic about such developments ,preventing
abuses anddeveloping apolicy which takes account ofhuman heeds t
Several Member States have already initiated publicity campaigns
that arebeginning toproduce thedesired effects ;thegeneral
climate ofconfidence created bythemobilisation oftheforces -
oftheCommunity tomeet thechallenge oftelematics iswhat will
constitute thebest wayofpreparing public opinion foritsaccept­
ance .
Themeasures delineated below areaimed athelping towards thegener­
ation ofaCommunity-wide social policy which isboth viable and
humane inrespect ofthese technological changes .
Forecasting andemployment :theneed toforesee difficulties
Theeffect onemployment andworking conditions ofinformation tech­
nologies isoneofthemajor anxieties ofthetrades unions and
professional associations .Efforts totackle theproblem intheMember
States must bestrenghtened ,fcrer.asts forfuture trends must be

made andthedialogue between both sides ofindustry must beextended
-' i •'_"•'i*'' "'„-''f.'■ .,
toCommunity level .. i/.'.y
Inorder topromote this dialogue ,theCommission will take
responsibility for : '
1)consulting thetwosides ofindustry inorder totry toestablish 1
general principles which would facilitate theconclusion ofout­
line agreements ofcollective' wage ,agreements ontheintroduction ,
of .information technologies (staff involvement ,.working conditions
- • . - . ... .
andhealth andsafety atwork ,retraining andfurther training ),
inline with what hasbeen achieved atCommunity level with regard
tovocational training . - N • V
. • ' , ■>'\ «' ■■Inprocedural terms ,such consultations could inparticular take
place within theStanding Committee onEmployment ,which brings
together representatives oftheemployers ,trade unions and goverrt'
ments ,andhasentered ontheagenda forits e.xtmeeting (in,.
January 1980 )theproblem oftheeffect ofmicroprocessors on ;.
employment . ■ •_ X
2)setting upaCommunity pool inorder tocentralize studies , .
research work andinformation ontheimpact ofnew technologi.es '
onemployment (ergonomics ,qualitative effects ).TheCommission ^
will beaided bytheAdvisory Committee onProgramme Management '
responsible fordata processing inorganizing thegathering of
informat ion funder themedium -andlong-term study ofthesector
(including regional aspects )scheduled inthemultiannual data :
processing programme . . . | •
3).conducting aperiodic assessement oftheimpact oftelematic sys­
tems andservices onsociety .'Inorder toestimate theimpact .
ofthemeasures mentioned above ,orother similar measures on
society ,theCommission will every five years ,incooperation
with theMember States ,analyse ,thetrend inthe .behaviour of -
thepopulation oftheCommunity inrelation totelematic systems .

-20-
and services .
Inorder todoso,theCommission intends touse -ashave the
Japanese with great success -theDelphi method which involves
consulting arepresentative sample ofindividuals asregards the
medium -andlong-term trendy intechnologies and their signifi­
cance inthepolitical ,economic andsocial contexts ,followed
byasynthesis oftheanswers and asecond consultation inorder
toensure that the final results are valid .
TheCommission isalso having talks with UNICE (Union ofthe
Industries .oftheEuropean Community )andtheEconomic andSocial
Committee inorder toensure that their main grounds forconcern
inthese sectors are voiced .
3.1.2 . Training ,thekey tosociety 'sadaptability
Unless anintensive effort ismade toadapt thewhole ofsociety
tothenew tools ,thedesired development oftheCommunity market
will beimpossible both atthelevel ofindustrial production and
for consumers .
Measures ofcommon interest aretherefore implied :
1)There should beasystematic study ofthemedium -andlong-term
needs ,broken down byregion andbyqualification based onstudies
already completed orinprogress ,intheMember States andwithin
professional associations such asECSA (European Computing Services
Association ).The terms ofreference oftheSubcommittee on
Training inData Processing setupunder CREST (Scientific and
Technical 'Research Committee )should beclarified and confirmed
asthecollection centre fornational studies .Aninitial report
will beprepared bytheCommission in1981 .
2)TheCommission should prepare in1980 ,forsubmission toaCouncil
ofEducation Ministers ,aprogramme ofaction foradoption in
1981 aimed inparticularly atstepping upexchanges ofexperience

on :
-theuse .anddissemination ofnewtechnologies -inalldisciplines
andatalllevels oftheeducation system ; ,
-methods ofteaching andfamiliarizing pupils with these techno - .
logies inschools , '
-application toteaching ofthehandicapped ; - • s
-teacher training methods ; '
-thedifferent budgetary instruments adopted .
The Consultative Committee forVocational Training will beconsulted
onthevarious aspects oftraining . -
3)TheuseoftheSocial Fund inthedata processing sector inorder
topromote training andretraining inelectronics anddata
processing technologies forthebenefit ofyoung people and
– 1
workers whose qualifications need tobeadapted totechnical
change orwhoareleaving asector indifficulty .
4)Select specialized seminars should beheld forheads ofunder­
takings andtrade union representatives inthedifferent regions
oftheCommunity .These seminars should discuss case studies
that bring tolight :-theassets of .newtechnologies ,thereper­
cussions onemployment ,thetraining needs andthedifferent
stages tobecompleted ,theappropriate management structures ,
» , .
and tasks
These seminars could atalater stage lead toopportunities for
organizing andfinancing pilot experiments onalimited scale
insmall -andmedium-sized undertakings . >*

-22-
5)Itisrecommended that theCommunity reimburse thetravelling
expenses ofindustrialists ortrade unionists whovisit another
Member State inorder tofind outabout aninnovation project .
Protection offreedoms
j v• -
*
-1
With thecirculation ofinformation atalllevels ofeconomic ,social
andcultural life throughout theCommunity ,itisessential that
individuals beprotected against possible abuses .Thefollowing
measures areproposed inorder toachieve such protection :
1)Theharmonization oflegislation which was carried outunder the
Council ofEurope 'sdraft Convention ontheprotection ofindivi­
duals with regard toautomatic processing ofpersonal data should
becontinued through concerted action bytheMember States on
the flow ofdata accross national borders .Since adecision on
thedraft Convention within thepolitical bodies oftheCouncil
ofEurope isimminent ,itwill have tobemade certain that all
theMember States areprepared toaccede totheConvention in
thenear future .Ifthis isnot th^case ,thealternative of
aCommunity directive will have tobeconsidered .
2)Theaction described above'will besupported bythedevelopment ,
under themultiannual data processing programme ,ofstudies
already inprogress ,aimed atidentifying additional measures
which could betaken regarding standardization ,technical studies
forincreasing thesecurity ofsystems andtheneed forfurther -
legislation .
3)Itwill benecessary atthe .same time todefine thepractical
consequences ofanynewCommunity project inthis field ,with
particular reference tosecurity andsecrecy ofdata transfer .

4)TheCommunity' 8responsibilities inthis area are atpresent
based onitslegal obligation toremove technical barriers to
trade .Itis,however ,evident that beyond this objective ,the
need istoprotect theCommunity citizen 'sfundamental rights ,
and that aneffective "harmonization ofthe laws oftheMember •
States would help todefend these rights .
Nevertheless ,inthe long term itmay benecessary toexamine
whether thepresent legal bases completely satisfy theneeds
orwhether awide political debate would bejustified.'
3.1.4 . Summary ofproposals : '
Aclimate ofconfidence should becreated v•-providing ample
information ontheimplications ofnew tec ->logies andon"the
overall ,coordinated ,action oftheMember States atCommunity level .
Difficulties inemployment should beanticipated bypooling forward
studies andintensifying thedialogue between both sides ofindustry
«
Training schemes designed tohelp society atlarge toadapt itself
should becoordinated andsupported .
Individual freedoms should besafeguarded ,inparticular asregards
exchanging data between Member States andwith non-member
Countries .
3.2 . Thecreation ofaCommunity market through standardization
Europe sbiggest unexploited asset isitscontinental market and
inparticular themarket made upbypublic procurements .

-24-
Europe canonly become agenuine information society "iftheusers
ofthenew telematic services can communicate with each other and
obtain these services throughout theCommunity under favourable
financial conditions ,andiffirms canbecertain that they will
• »have asufficiently large market forthem to/measure uptointer­
national competition .
IntheUnited States thestandards likely tocreate acommon tele­
matics Systems andServices market andinfrastructure arelaid down
bythelarge firms (IBMandITT)andtheFederal Government .
InEurope ,nopublic authority fulfils this function onasimilar
scale ,since theauthorities arenational andtheinternational
organizations forstandardization orcollaboration inthetele­
communications industry only issue recommendations which arenot
supported bystrategic decisions ofjoint industrial policy .
TheCommunity must fill this gapbyusing itspowers of
standardization inorder toharmonize thepublic markets inthe
fields oftelecommunications anddata processing.' *
3.2.1 Télécommunications
Inthis field aunique opportunity tosetupaharmonized basic
infrastructure forthenewinformation erawill beprovided inthe
years ahead when all thepostal andtelecommunications administra­
tions develop integrated digital transmission andswitching net­
works ,thereby offering awhole gamut of .newservices ..The
administrations arealready striving tolaydown joint specifica­
tions forthese networks andservices ,with theassistance ofthe
Commission ,atEuropean level under theauspices oftheEuropean
Conference ofPostal andTelecommunications Administrations (CEPT)l )
1)EECand 17Western European countries ' '

-25-
and international level in.the conte.xt oftheInternational Tele­
graph andTelephone Consultative Committee (CCITT )..
ItistheCommunity 'sduty tosupport this work bytaking apoli­
tical decision anddrawing upatimetable foxit.Itistherefore
. /
proposed that in1980 aCouncil decision should betaken ,tothe
effect that theMember ,States 'telecommunications administrations
I «
undertake : " '■1 ... \| -
-henceforth toconsult each other before introducing anynew .
.service ; ; *'•
-toimplement therecommendations that will emerge .from joint
studies conducted within telecommunications organizations
existing atEuropean level (CEPT )andinternational level (CCITT )
regarding theintroduction ofthese newservices into integrated
digital transmission andswitching networks ; ■ '
-from 1983 onwards ,should these recommendations nothave been
finalized bytheCEPT andCCITT ,tointroduce thenewservices
only totheextent that they have formulated ajoint approach for
offering them ,sothat compatibility iseffectively ensured
throughout th&Community ;" '
' '
-from 1985 onwards ,tobuyonly digital transmission andswitching
systems that aredesigned forprogressive integration ofthe
services insofarasthey arebased onharmonized implementation
_-. • 4
atCommunity level either attheir instigation ormaccordance
with therecommendations oftheEuropean organization (CEPT )or
international organization (CCITT )forsuch systems.'
In1980 ,other Council decisions ,inline yith theaims oftheTreaty
andtheCouncil Declaration ofDecember 1976 onpublic procurement -
oftelecommunications equipment should back .uptheprocess :

-26-
-from .1981 onwards ,the user should beable freely toobtain
terminal equipment either from theindustry orfrom thepostal
and telecommunications administrations ;
-from 1981 andfor aprovisional period ofthree years ,theMember
States' administrations will examine and introduce procedures and
methods fortheprogressive expansion oftheir sources ofsupply
atCommunity level .
Data processmg
With aview tocreating aCommunity market fortelematic systems
andservices ,harmonization andstandardization areessential for
data processing just asthey are for thetelecommunications network •
Aconsensus already exists among theMember States inthis sector
reflected inthestandardization measures included intheCommunity 's
multiannual (1979-1983 )data processing programme ,inparticular
thepromotion ofstandards inthecontext ofinternational organiza­
tions (ISO )and theimplementation ofstandards andprocedures at
Community level .
Nevertheless ,thecreation ofahomogeneous market depends onan
additional ,fundamental condition :the .imposition ofcommon standards
andrequirements onprocurements bypublic authoricies.lt istherefore
proposed that bymeans ofaCouncil Decision tobetaken in1980 ,.
theMember States will oblige their administrations toadopt common
standards foralltheir equipment ,tooffer Community users thesame ■
approved data exchange facilities ,and toseethat these facilities
areincorporated inallequipment they buyafter 1983 .Inorder to
prepare theground forimplementing this requirement ,they should
jointly draw upandmutually accept asetofprocedures for <esta­
blishing hardware andsoftware acceptance tests inrespect ofeach
standard .These tests should ensure that each product conforms to
each oftheapplicable standards .'

-27-
3.2.3 . Summary ofproposals
TheCommunity will bring itsstadardizing powers into play onthe
basis ofapolitical decision :
-through Council decisions which aim atcreating auniform -public
procurement market fortelematics equipment andservices ;
-byensuring that therequirements forCommunity standardization
areapplied ineach oftheareas mentioned inthis-papei ;;
» 4 t
3.3 . Developing theindustry and themarket forinformation
AEuropean telematics policy must bebased ontheDevelopment of
data bases ofallkinds and „onthepromotior vfaEuropean infor­
mation industry .
The second Three-Year Action Plan (1978-1980 )for information and
for scientific and technical documentation (Council Decision dated
8/10/1978 )places theaccent onthecreation ,oftheEURONET .-DIANE network
and onthedevelopment ofamarket forinformation .Itfollows
that thethird Action Plan ,currently being prepared for theyears
1981 to1984 (Draft Council Decision tobeputforward before the
endof1980 ),should look tocreating theconditions necessary for
nurturing ax^dstrengthening areal European information industry .
Itwould notbeunreasonable for theCommunity information industry
toset foritself the same' target laid down asageneral aim for
theEuropean telematics industry ,which istoachieve 30%ofthe
world market ,although this would imply increasing annual output
byafactor of5.

-28-/
I"
Thequantitative lagofEurope vis-S-vxs theUSA isre-enforced by
aqualitative aspect which Europe will never beable toreduce nor
make upunless itputs amassive effort into creating systems with
ahigh value-added content ,Theunsatisfied potential comprises
information about markets ,about products and about producers .In
thefield ofplanning andeconomic strategy ,decision-makers need
information from economic models and from statistical series .
Furthermore information ,whether professional orotherwise ,isalso
needed byindividuals (doctors ,chemists ,accountants ,lawyers ...) .
Inorder toensure that theindustry iadeveloped inparallel with
themarket forinformation ,thespecific role oftheCommunity ,
based onCouncil Decision of4/11/1978 ,will follow five principal
directions ;
3.3.1 . The creation ofafavourable climate
Itisimportant toeliminate thevarious obstacles hindering the
development ofthemarket and totake appropriate measures tostimu­
late the creation and use ofinformation services .
Having organized asymposium ontheinformation industry atwhich
useful recommendations were putforward ,theCommission isprepared
toundertake studies onthemarket forinformation ,onthepolicies
intheMember States andalso inother industrialized countries ,
with regard toinformation ,,andlastly ontheeffect ofdifferent
taxation systems .Following these studies ,recommendations will be
made toimprove access toinformation ingovernmental andsemi-
governmental organizations ,toco-ordinate national plans andlastly
toimprove andharmonize thelegal andtaxregimes together with
theposition oncopyright .
3.3.2 . Aid toprivate investors
Thesecond Action Plan recommends the "promotion ofco-operation
amongst information services within theCommunity with aview ,

particularly ,towards rationalization ,improvement inquality and
reducing overall costs within theframework offree competition "
(Council Decision of9/10/1978 ,annex 1).
Inthelight oftheabove ,theCommission should aim tofacilitate ,
contacts between investors •Ithasalready begun by
encouraging ,with dueregard totherules ofcompetition ,thecreation
oftheAssociation oftheEuropean Suppliers ofInformation Services
whose inaugural meeting will take place inLuxemburg on26/11/1979 .
1 \ - ' '
Afurther field ofactivity will beto "trytolessen risks runby
companies inthis sector .Torespond tothewishes ofindustry this
particular aidcould beallocated tomarket studies ,reports onthe
legal situation ,thesolution ofproblems related totheuseof
several languages andlastly thepromotion ofstandardized software *
Acceleration ofthe transfer ofinformation tosmall andmedium -
sized companies ■ \ ■ '*
Thesecond Action Plan highlighted theneed to"assist small and .
medium-sized companies inhaving access toinformation ".
In1977 theCommission organized asymposium oh;theTransfer of
Information toIndustry .Asecond symposium will beorganized' -
in1980 with theaimofstudying theneeds ofsmal'l andmedium-sized
* ' *'
enterprises . ./
Once particular needs have been identified ,itwill beappropriate
toencourage thecreation ofinformation distribution systems as
well as^softwar^ /'adapted tothespecific needs ofthis type ofuser
and^to undertake education andtraining asrapidly andascheaply '
aspossible ofspecialists ^intheuseofup-to-date technologies ,
forexample Videotex (Council Resolution of24/6/1971 ).

3.3.4 Support forparticular projects
' ' ' " ' v '
"Aspart ofthefirst Action Plan ,thedevelopment ofinformation
systems isessentially based ontheprinciple ofco-operation between
thespecialized public services intheMember States .
Bynowadopting arather more market-oriented attitude ,theCommission
will shortly becalling forproposals ,particularly intheareas
ofagriculture ,food technology ,biomedicine ,theenvironment ,and
nodoubt energy ,although itwill notbetheintention toexclude
other sectors .This action will betaken with theagreement of ,the
CISTD l)(decision expected at .theendof1979 )andwill usemoney
available inthesecond Action Plan uptolevel of 1to2million •'
units ofaccount peryear .Itsmain aim istoimprove those services
which exist onaCommunity scale andtocreate newservices . ...
%
TheCommunity will use itsexisting financial instruments ,tolaunch
;
support programmes essentially designed toencourage information
systems ofahigh value-added content ,notably inthefields ofthe
economy ,industry andbusiness .
3.3.5 . Opening uptheworld market toEuropean information services
A
Inorder toenable theEuropean information service market toreach
asufficient size,' itwill benecessary toobtain access tothe
markets ofother developed countries forEuropean information industry
products (forexample access toNorth American countries for . '
EURONET-DIANE ),which correspond totheir real needs *andtooffer
* technical ,legal ",commercial andfinancial assistance from theCommunity
forprojects inassociated countries (LOME ,MAGHREB ,MASHREK andISRAEL )
whilst atthesame time extenditig 'thenecessary infrastructure ,beginnin
with the extension ofEURONET ." .
Ψ * ,■
Φ·· ■
1)Committee forInformation andScientific andTechnical Documentation .

-31-
3.3.6 . Summary oftheabove proposals
Icisimportant tosupport thecreation ofaEuropean information
industry -
-fcyhelping theprivate sector toinvest mthecreation ofdata
bases andassociated services ;
-inmaking sure that small and rr.edium-s ized enterprises have access
totheinformation required ;
-bypromoting accessible public data bases ,through theco-ordination
andrationalization ofpolicies intheKamb^r States andbyjoint
Community actions where appropriate ;
-byencouraging theEuropean information industry toexport its
products totheworld atlarge .
3.4 . Development ofindustri aland technological capacities
Inorder tokeep inclose contact with manufacturers concerned with
thetelematics market ,theCommission intends toorganize around -
table conference which will actasanindustrial consultative body '
responsible fortesting theeffectiveness ofChemeasures envisaged .
Applications and software
1 1 >
Asfarastelematics applications areconcerned ,steps must betaken
tostructure themarket bygrouping theneeds oftheusers ona
European level and topromote andencourage aneffective response
bythemanufacturers totheneada thus identified .3.4.1 .

-32-
Therole oftheCommunity inthepromotion ofapplications ofEuropean
concern isalready recognized andconstitues oneoftheobjectives
ofthefour-year data-processing programme which theCommission
intends toimplement once thequalified experts required aremade
available .Community support measures maybeextended inthelight
t
ofexperience gained inthefirst twoyears .Aseach Community
project islaunched ,theCommission will ensure that matters relating
todata protection and social concerns are taken into account
(see 3.1 ).,
Inaddition ,certain applications require harmonization atCommunity
level (chap .3.2.);three examples ofwhich are :
\
-theexchange ofdata inthefield ofinternational trade requires
theharmonization ofterminologies andthe creation ofdata
communication standards . "
-Inorder topermit expansion onaCommunity scale ,thetransfer
offunds electronically between banks andsavings banks requires
anurgent andharmonized solution totheproblem ofastandardized
system ofpersonal identification aswell astechnical solutions
totheproblem ofdata protection ;
.1 . '. . • •
s Ï '
-In'certain important fields ofapplication fortelematics techno­
logy ,such asairtraffic control ,aneffective response touser
requirements andthecreation ofauniform industrial' market require
closer coordination ofCommunity-level policies .Thegrowth of
airtraffic isincreasing thepressures onthepresent system ,
which isbased onnational organization and Eurocontroll ).
Standard andprocedures must also beharmonized inthis field and
ψ
there must also beagreater degree ofjoint planning .TheMember
States andtheCommission must prepare forsuch action forthe
renewal oftheoperating brief forEurocontrol ii1983 . *
1)Eurocontrol :European Oranization forAirTraffic Safety

-33-
3.4.2 . Peripherals ;aframework forbilateral ortrilateral collaboration
TheCommunity multiannual programme also involves studies designed
toevolve projects intheperipherals sector whose development has
notbeen decided .Nevertheless Anumber ofEuropean industries are
expressing theneed to.develop andproduce peripherals (forthemass
market orofahigh quality ).TheCommunity must therefore create
anappropriate framework forpromoting adhoccollaboration ona
•bilateral ortrilateral basis where this iscompatible with therules
* \
ofcompetition forcompanies ,which will result intheconclusion
,ofspecialized agreements ortheestablishment of'joint subsidiaries .
Inthemain ,itwill dothis bycarrying out asystematic analysis *
oftangible opportunities forcooperation andthrough thepossible
•allocation of'financial support incertain cases ,either inthe -;
form ofcoordinated national aidorbyrecourse toCommunity .. •
financial instruments . •
Microelectronics technology :anarea forkeystrategic measures
* , . • x
Inthecase ofbasic technologies and inparticular microelectronics
which will beused by .theentire ,industry ~another form ofaction
isrequired . 1 ' ' ' , .
Inthis sector ,which affects alLothers insofarasitwill be ,
required tosupply advanced micrdelectrqnica circuits serving as •'
thetechnological common denominator ofallfuture telematic systems
andservices ,theneed ^forCommunity action hasalready been
"recognized inaCouncil Resolution of11September (seeAnnex ).TheCommission
iscurrently preparing proposals forprojects which will involve
joint financing ,tobetransmitted totheCouncil atthebeginning
of1980 .Inaccordance with theterms oftheResolution ,these * "*
proposals will cover twoareas ofthefuture which arethekeyto
real competitiveness :

-highly-specialized industrial equipment used inintegrated-circuit
manufacturing processes ;
* ' .
-development ofnewcomputer-aided techniques forcircuit design
and te6ting .N■ .
Itroust berealized that thepoint atissue isabasic political
option ,different incharacter from other ambient conditions necessary
«
forthepromotion oftelematic systems andservices onaCommunity
scale .Thevery question ofwhether Europe should equip itself with
thebasic technology ,orcontinue toacquire it,isinvolved .
0
l .
Therole ofindustry istocreate ,bydrawing onitsownresources
oronnational resources ,thenew advanced technology products
destined fortheworld market .However ,theapproach toandmastery
ofthekeytechnologies frequently requires alevel ofresources
beyond theordinary means ofthecompanies .TheCommunity 'srole
istoensure that theEuropean industry asawhole has access to
these technologies ingood time when theprogrammes ofourprincipal .
world competitors arereceiving massive public aid .
■-■ -y..
*' <
Themain aimofthecurrent major national programmes' isto
disseminate existing microelectronics technology ..Therole ofthe
Community istherefore tounderpin thelong-term developments without
which theEuropean industry will find itself ,inthemiddle ofthe
next decade ,onthebrink ofanew .andeven more serious technological
abyss andcondemned tocontinued decline .
Community action inthefield ofdevelopment will besupplemented
bymeasures inthefield oftraining anddissemination ofknowledge
with theparticular aimofpromoting ,incoordination -rith national
measures ,"innovation workshops "centred round component manu­
facturers .When theinitial projects ,currently being prepared ,are
implemented ,theCommission will re-examine other basic technologies

such asopto-electronics ,
Lastly ,theCommission ,inconjunction with themain public users
(PTTadministrations ,European Sp^ce Agency )andindustry ,will look
into thedesirability ofcreating aforum atCommunity level soas
toenable needs andachievements tobecompared and toplan techno­
logical development andbasic research ona.sufficiently large .scale
astoensure success . ■ > ' <■ r
Summary ofproposals '1: •
Rapid Community action isneeded inthefollowing areas : ' .
-applications andsoftware :identification ofrequirements , '
forecasting 6ftherepercussions fortheCommunity andencouragement
oftheindustry torespond ; • ...
-peripherals :promotion ofspecialized agreements andadhoc ■
collaboration :
• • ' » . i
-microelectronic technology :ensuring that Community industry is
inaposition tomaster themost advanced technology inthecourse .
ofthenext decide onthebasis ofcommon measures involving
equipment andkeytechniques . •
Information technology and space activities :theneed tocoordinate
With theadvent ofthetelematic area ,certain equipment ofageneral
nature will assume anoverriding importance both interms ofthe
vehicle (e.g. communications satellites )orthededicated user
(e.g. remote-sensing applications ). ' -
Full weight should begiven toEuropean efforts inthese fields by
incorporating them into abroader policy framework

-36-
3.5.1 Communications satellites xnEurope
These will beable toprovide three types ofservice :
-"Conventional "communications satellite relay fortelephone or
television :theEuropean space programmes have already been
decided (e.g. theECSprogramme )and aCommunity action istherefore
nolonger justified .-
-NewEuropean business services (tobelaunched in1982-83 ):
two-way services between users (voice andintegrated data ).The
main effort must be'devoted tosetting upaEuropean market for
ground terminals ,tobebased on ,thestandardization ofsatellite /
terminal interfaces .The Council decision ontelecommunication
equipment andservices (§3.2.1 above )should cover interfaces
with the space sector .
Furthermore ascale ofcharges has tobeagreed based onactual
costs within Europe ,irrespective ofdistances andfrontiers .
Inaddition ,incollaboration with thePost Offices ,the
Community should examine theproblems ofthe necessary management
structures .
Lastly ,itisimportant fortheCommunity toact asaforum ,where
needs canbeanalysed andmade coherent andresources properly
mobilized tomeet them .
-Direct Television Broadcasting (1983 ):television transmissions
"beamed "over allorpart ofEurope andpicked upbysmall indivi­
dual domestic aeriels .This service allows coverage ofagiven
area andgreatly reduces thecost ofintroducing additional TV
channels .

Themain effort must bedirected towards taking advantage ofthe
size ofthecontinental market through standardisation of
satellite transmission specifications . .Furthermore , ;
itwould beuseful ifthe .Community could work outanagreed
approach towards questions such asterritorial overlapping ,rules
covering commercial TV,etc..' with aview totheharmonization
orconvergence ofnational legislations . ' , '
Inorder toavoid growing congestion ofthegeostationary qrbit ,
totheadvantage oftheindustralized countries -which isbeing
opposed with increasing bitterness T>ythedeveloping countries -
Europe will becompelled torestrict thenumber ofsatellites which
itoperates for "internal use"andto'increase their useful load
accordingly .-Asaresult ofthis political pressure bythedevelop­
ingcountries ,individual national satellites oflimited coverage
arelikely toberestricted inthelong term infavour ofheavy
platforms serving several countries simultaneously .Forthis
reason astudy needs .tobecarried out to^?:termine what kind of
« '
management structure could becreated and ,here ,theCommunity
has apromotional role toplay plus thetask ofensuring consistency
among theMember States whowill besharing these platforms .
Itisnatural that this approach should becoupled with ajoint
andcoherent analysis ofrequirements andtothis end theCommunity
canprovide aframework forthesubmission andstudy ofideas .
Remote sensmg -,v '
Other needs currently coming tolight urgently require tobe
studied inthespace /telematics context .
Several policies managed ormonitored atCommunity level (agricul -.
tural policy ,fisheries ,environmental policy ,regional policy ,
etc...) would be istrengthened byadvance objective information

38-
onthestate ofearth resources .Remote sensing canalready provide
this type ofinformation ,thepolitical andeconomic importance
ofwhich isfundamental andwhose impact onintegration is,
substantial .. v .
Inthis area theCommunity isalready developing pilot projects for
research andcoordination with national programmes .
Accordingly ,theCommunity hasaspecific role toplay both by
optimizing theR&Deffort (setting-up ofaforum forend-users ,
inmost cases public administrations ,onasector -by-sector basis )
andbyhelping tocreate amarket bymaking theCommunity Insitutions
particular needs known .
I <•
Using this data ,and inorder toovercome obstacles and tocreate
thenecessary spin-off effect ,theCommunity could decide tolaunch
pilot projects aimed atimproving theoperation ofcertain of|ts
policies' (forestry and/oragricultural inventory ,natural resources ,
etc ..).
Accessof theEuropean Space Industry totheworld market
Experience acquired both inEurope andtheUSAclearly indicates
that aprecondition oftheexpansion oftheinternational space '.-'
market isthecredibility oftheproducing industry ,guaranteed
bythegovernments .This credibility isonly attainable ifEurope
canpresent acommon front both toitspotential customers and to
itscompetitors . , <
AsfarasBlack Africa isconcerned ,competition among theindustri­
alized areas forthesupply ofcommunications satellites hasbegun .
Asearly as1983 Europe will have theopportunity toembark on
promotional measures inthis field byincluding a"Black African
telecommunications payload"onthefirst flight oftheL-SAT
satellite .TheCommunity ,inparticular ,bymeans ofitsprivileged
links under theLomS Convention ,should support this initiative by
providing thefinancing (EDFregional funds fortheitems ofdirect
interest totheACPcountries and ,attherequest ofthelatter ,
indirect support totheindustry producing theground terminals and

thesources ofpower ),bydetermining thestructure capable of
managing theoperation ofthesystem andbyhelping topromote the
project -among theAfrican administrations concerned .•r'■
This action should bewell received bytheMaghreb andMashrek
countries ,Israel ,andpossibly inthecontext oftheEuro-Arab dialogue .
Itisworth remembering that Europe lost theARABSAT . '"v
contract toCOMSAT (USA)mainly asaresult ofalack ofcredibility
atEuropean level . ' \ '' ' '
Europe 'stechnical resources N
Theactivities oftheEuropean Space Agency (ESA)aremainly concerned
'with thetechnical development ofsatellites andtheir control systems
anddonotdeal with theenrivonmental problems inherent inthespace
development .Thetask ofsettling .these problems isleft byESA ~
• ' '' "toitsMember States onad ,hocbasis .... '
IntheCommission 'sopinion Community action would bethebest way
of .improving this situation ,not tosubstitute ESAaction ;but to
create among theMember States which areparties totheESAconvention
thenecessary political andlegale consensus . .<!>' V '•*.
Summary ofproposals . ■;
Inparticular the .following subjects arespecific Community
responsibilities *_,' ■
–theCommunity alone possesses themeans ofimposing legally binding
obligations ,particularly inrelation tostandards .Thetimetable
ofyork in .this area isdictated bytheentry into services of
thenewsatellite systems (1982-83 );
-theglobal nature ciftheservices provided bysatellites calls
foraEuropean approach tomanagement structures (relationships between

-40-
services andmarkets );
4
-theCommunity represents themajor part oftheEuropean market
andprovides a"gateway "toother countries .ItistheCommunity 's
responsability tocarry out acoherent analysis ofrequirements
and ,ifnecessary indeveloping countries ,toprovide thenecessary
technical assistance .
3.o TheCommunity :anexemplary centre foraninformation system
3.6.1 . The Commission 'srole
TheCommunity ,itsinstitutions and thenational governments with
which itworks constitue avast information system per se,exemplified
byitspolymorphous andmultilingual pecularities .Accordingly ,
theCommunity isatoneand thesame time theuser with thehighest
stake inthenewservices offered bythetelematic sector and the
supplier best placed tomake available toallinterested parties
the mass ofinformation which itcollects .
Itisacknowledged atCommunity level that agapexists asfar as
theavailability ofgeneral data banks isconcerned .Themajor
information centres areAmerican and ,while there are alarge number
ofdata banks ofthis type within theCommunity institutions and
thenational public -andprivate-sector departments ,their accessi­
bility isvery limited .
Since aninitial Community instrument already exists ,Euronet and
Diane ,steps should betaken tomake this thespringboard ofextending
acommon pool ofdata bases tobelocated atthenodal points of
thenetwork .Where necessary ,thesharing ofresponsability could
beagreed among theMember States .

ACommission -data -base -policy should therefore bedrawn upwhich
isdesigned tointerconnect with theMember States andwhich isgeared'
cotheopening-up oftheCommission' sinformation resources tothe
reat ofthe outside world .
Aworking plan along these lines consists ofthefollowing stages :
-list ofdata bases inthe Commission and other institutions
including current andplanned projets intheMember States relating
togeneral andsectoral policies (agriculture ,international trade
economy ,industry ,energy ,environment ,steel ,etc.)whose intro­
duction into theEURONET-DIANE system iswarranted .*-
-study ofthetechnical problems tobesolved prior totheintro­
duction ofthese bases (compatibility ,str -^Ture ,interrogation
modes ,staff);'
-identification ofthemain gaps inthebody ofthedata bases
listed andprogramme forthecreation andcompatibility ofnew
data bases ;
-study ofsolutions tocope with themultilingual aspects ofthe
data bases ;
-study ofthetechnical andtariff solutions designed tocreate
awider market fortheservices provided under thesystem ,with
special reference tothecountries ofNorth America ;
-study oftheneeds ofthecountries associated with Community
(Lom6 ,Maghreb ,Mashrek ,Israel )andlink–upprocedures .

42-
3.6.2 Blueprint foraninter-institutional information system based onthe
new technologies
The new telematic services may constitue apowerful lever for
rationalisation ,especially fortheinternal needs oftheinstitu­
tions ,inrelation totheconsiderable mass ofdocuments which they
handle .
Aninitial operational project forintegrated services covering the
institutions and theMember States will serve asadry runwith regard
to :
-thelaying-down ofstandards for theexchange ofdata necessitated
bydevelopments inthetelematics sector ;
-theprovision ofincentives toinduce thepost andtelecommunications
administrations toprovide thefacilities inherent inanintegrated
communications network ;
-theeffects onindustry .
Asapriority ,thesystem will seek toeliminate ,whenever possible ,
thetransmission ofdocuments aspart oftheday-to-daybusiness
oftheCommunity institutions ,Astart will bemade byproviding
Members ofParliament with direct access toCommission held informa­
tion .
Thesupport oftheMembers States isnecessary inorder toaccomplish
such aproject .
With aview toitsexecution ,theproject-definition phase to
commence in1980 will bedirected along three main lines :

-43-
-information needs within theCommission ,theother institutions
and theMember States ; •
-project -definition study onstandards ,particularly with aview
totheexchange ofdata ;
-technical feasibility studies andjustifications oneconomic
grounds . - .
This phase will befollowed byadesign anddevelopment phase and
thetwophases will extend over aperiod ofthree years ,inorder
that work canbegin inlate 1982 .
3.6.3 Projects in "thefield ofinternational trade
Since theprimary task oftheCommunity istheattainment ofthecustoms
uuion particular attention must benaid toth3etelematic applications
which will speed this up.
Alarge number ofprivate andpublic data-processing systems are
already used inthefield ofinternational trade ,and theincreasing
development ofsuch systems can bepredicted intheyears tocome .
Inorder topromote this ,steps must betaken tocreate theconditions
necessary for thesimple andrapid exchange ofinformation between
theparties concerned .Efforts toachieve standardization inthis
sector ,involving thecompetent international agencies (Geneva - >
based ECE ,CCCandISO)° arealready under way .
CCC Customs Cooperation Council
ISOInternational Organization forStandardization

-44
Furthermore ,theCommission ,with theapproval oftheCouncil ,has
already launched abroad study known asCADDIA (Cooperation sur
1'Automatisation deDocuments etdeDonn^es Import /Export etpour
1'Agriculture -Cooperation ontheAutomation ofImport /Export and
Agricultural Documents andData )themain aims ofwhich are to
contribute tothegradual removal ofbarriers totrade and toimprove
the administration ofthe customs' union .
Among other things ,this study (thefindings ofwhich areexpected
bytheendof1980 )seeks tosetupmachinery which will ensure that
systems developed independently inthefield ofinternational trade ,
arecompatible andinterconnectable .
Against this background ,theCommission intends toembark ,inthe
short term ,onpilot projects designed tolook into thepossibilities
ofautomating theCommunity transit arrangements aswell asthequestion
ofautomating thetransmission ofinformation required for theday-
to-day administration ofthecustoms union between theMember States
ontheonehand ,and theCommission ,ontheother .
3.6.4 . Summary ofproposals
TheCommission should take steps to :
-strengthen itsdata-base potential ,inorder toprovide all
interested parties with wider access via Euronet ;
-increase theCommunity 'soperating efficiency bysetting upa
network ofteiematic services linking theCommunity institutions .
and theMember State governments ;
-devote special efforts tothedissemination ofinformation
relating tointernational trade

The function ofthefinancial instruments oftheCommunity •
TheCommunity 'scontribution tothedevelopement oftelematic
systems andservices must primarily beatthepolicy level , *
andnotfinancial .Investment inproduct development and ^ -
marketing isprimarily thetask oftheprivate sector ,while ,
themajor ,investments intelecommunications infrastructure * •
andeducation will fall inevitably tonational governments .
Only inthecase ofalong-term technology such asmicro­
electronics oroftheCommunity 'sowninter-institutional 'needs -
could specific measures involving modest funding from the
Community budget bejustified .Nonetheless ,newfinancial
instruments donotappear necessary since there areavariety
ofways inwhich theCommunity 'sexisting instruments could
beused . •'
Theexisting financial instruments could infact usefully
assist inimplementing thestrategy setoutinthis document ,
within their present rules andrespecting heir specific priorities
thebest ways andtechniques ofmeeting theobjectives should
consequently besought :particularly those which will promote
information technologies insmall andmedium sized companies .
This should bedone inclose liaison with theEuropean Investment
Bank . ,
TheuseoftheSocial "Fund intheinformation Sector (see3.1)
will permit thefinancing ofindustrial retraining oreducation .
schemes . •
Proposals forRegulations ,currently under discussion inthe
Council ,have already been putforward with regard tomethods-'
ofusing thequota-free section oftheRegional Development
Fund fortheintroduction ofnewtechnologies insmall "and
medium-sized firms . •

-46-
Asfar asthemain existing budgetary resources areconcerned ,
apart from themultiannual data-processing programme (1979-83 )■
and thesecond three-year (1978-81 )plan ofaction inthe
field ofscientific andtechnical information anddocumentation ,
aportion oftheresources covering other Community policies
(energy conservation ,environment ,agriculture ,etc...) could
beearmarked fordata-processing projects .
3.7.3 . Where transnational mergers arenecessary toencourage groupings
bigenough tocope with theRand Drequired ,thepossibility
ofgranting special tax ,VAT orother financial status could
becontemplated .TheCommission could forward proposals tothe
Council along these lines .
3.7.4 . Intheevent ofCommunity policies being adopted for some or
allofthesectors ,Community financing could beenvisaged
subsequently ,possibly byCommunity borrowing ,forexample
fortelecommunications ,data banks ,data processing ,and
satellite infrastructure .

-47-
CONCLUSIONS
Thetreasures described inthe _preceding chapters -whether they involve
standardization ,coordination orintegration -will shortly bethesubject
ofproposals orother initiatives bytheCommission .Inparticular ,the
Corr.mii.sion will beforwarding totheCouncil proposals on:
-training ;
-atelecommunications policy andconsolidation ofthedata-processing
standardization policy ;
-thepromotion ofaninformation industry ;
-support forbasic microelectronics technologies ;
-thecoordination ofpolicies relating tospace-technology applications .
Other arguments setoutinthetext ,such astheapplication ofthenew
information technologies forthebenefit oftheCommunity institutions
andgovernments ,will bethesubject ofexploratory contacts andstudies
which may later form thebasis formore detailed proposals .Itisclear that success
will also depend on anynecessary additionnal staff being made available bythe
budgetary authorities . . , , '
One ofthe yardsticks ofsuccess inthis area isthespeed with which
decisions aretaken .Accordingly ,theMember States should introduce a
procedure which isadequate for thepurpose .
Theway toraise thepublic resources needed tomeet thetelematic challenge
and face uptointernational competition isthrough .thejudicious use of ,the
Community 'sexisting financial instruments andbycoordinating inabroader
framework theconsiderable sums committed by .several Member States .

-43-
Joint action involving budgetary measures canbejustified only inexcep­
tional cases such assupport forbasic microelectronics technology orthe
introduction oftelematics equipment intheinstitutions andgovernments .
Itisbypooling awhole range ofmeasures directed towards thesame goal
andbyevaluating theoverall situation inthelight ofbroad discussions on
thesocial potentialities oftheadvent of information technologies that
theCommunity will seehow touse them tobest effect .

13.9.79 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunitiesinrhrfim
NoC231/1
(Information)
COUNCIL
COUNCILRESOLUTION
of11September1979
onaCommunityactionpromotingmicroelectronic technology
THECOUNCILOFTHEEUROPEANCOMMUNITIES ,
Whereas,inordertomootinparticulartherequire­
mentsoithesystematicCommunityprogramme
prmiJcdtorintheCouncilresolutionof15July
1^7-i<maCommunitypolicyondataprocessing(l)
K.iropemustpossess.technologiesofthemostad­
vancedtype; •.Whereasmajorinvestmentsareneededtodevelop
andmakeavailableintimethetechnologiesandtools
whichcouldenableEuropeanindustrytomeetthe
competitionofthemostadvancedproductsin19S5;.
believingthatth-taimscanbeachievedonlywith
thehelpofthemainindustrialusers,suppliersand
otherexpertsthroughoutEurope,
Whereasthetimelyapplicationofthelatestmicro-
clectron.ccomponenttechnologyisofcriticalimpor­
tanttothedevelopmentofEuropeanindustryasa
whole:-INVITESTHECOMMISSION TO:
Whereasdependenceonexternalsourcesofsupply,
ofequipment,materialsandtechnologyinthisfield
candelaytheintroductionofnewproductsand
renderlargepartsofEuropeanindustryuncom­
petitive; .-
whereastheabilitytoapplymicroelectronic tech-,
■nolo^yinawiderangeofindustriesislinkedtothe
avaiiaoiiityofinnovativeengineersandtechnicians
trainedinthenewtechnologies;
vihereasadvancedcomputer-aided designandtesting
facilitieswillbeessentialtoawiderangeofindustries;
(')OJNoC86.20.7.1974,p.1.1.examinethepossibilitiesandmethodsofco­
ordinatingnationalprojectsinthissectorand.
2.inthelightofthisexaminationtosubmittoit
before11March19S0,specificprojectsat
.Communitylevel,whichtheCouncilundertakes
toactonassoonaspossible.Suchprojectsmust
complywiththefollowingcriteria:
(a).implementation oftheprojectatCommunity
levelmusthaveeconomic .ortechnicalad­
vantagesoverimplementation atnational
level;
(b)theprojectmustbejointlyproposedbyunder­
takings,researchbodiesorusersfromseveral
MemberStates;

NoC231/2JMJjlSi>°fJjLy
».9.79
i.examine,asamatterofpriority,thefollowing
arcas>
•(a)thedevelopment intheCommunityofthe
productionofadvancedequipmentand
methodsneededtorealizealeadingEuropean
capabilityinmicroelectronic technology;
(b)furthereducationwithaviewtoincreasing
thenumberandmobilityofengineersand
techniciansspecializedinthenewtechnology
anditsapplication;,(G)thedevelopment,withtheaidofcomputers,
ofharmonizedsystemsforthedesignand
testingofVLSIcomponentsaccessibletoa
broadspjnofEuropeanindustries.
FortheCouncil
ThePresident
RayMcSHARRY