17.2.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC40/95
Opiniononthecommunication fromtheCommission—TheEuropeanelectronicsand
informationtechnologyindustry:stateofplay,issuesatstakeandproposalsforaction
(92/C40/23)
On30May1991theEconomicandSocialCommittee,actingunderthefourthparagraphof
Article20ofitsRulesofProcedure,decidedtodrawupanOpinionontheabovementioned
communication .
TheSectionforIndustry,Commerce,CraftsandServices,whichwasresponsibleforpreparing
theCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon6November1991.The
RapporteurwasMrFlum.
Atits291stplenarysession(meetingof28November1991)theEconomicandSocial
CommitteeadoptedthefollowingOpinionbyamajoritywiththreevotesagainstandthree
abstentions .
industriesofthe1990s,suchaselectronicmanufactur­
ingandautomationtechnologies ,serviceandconsumer
electronics,andabovealltheinformationandcom­
municationsindustry.WithaturnoverofECU
175billionandmorethan800000employeesinnearly
13000firmsinEurope,thisindustryisamajorecon­
omicsectorandafast-growingmarketwhichaccounts
fornearly5%ofGDP.1.Introduction
1.1.Inthefollowingrecommendation foractionin
thefieldofindustrialpolicytheCommitteedrawson
theanalysisofthesituationoftheEuropeanelectronics
andinformationtechnologyindustrycontainedinthe
Commission'scommunication of3April1991.This
Opinionisthuscomplementary totheCommittee's
OpinionontheCommissioncommunication ongeneral
industrialpolicy(1).
1.2.Inlinewiththeconceptofanindustrialpolicy
inanopenandcompetitiveenvironment (2)established
inNovember1990,specificproposalsforactionare
nowbeingsubmittedfortheCommunityinformation
technology (IT)andelectronicsindustry.TheCom­
mitteewelcomestheCommission'sinitiativeandcon­
siderstheproposalsforactioninthisimportantecon­
omicsectortobeasuitablebasisforfurtherdevelop­
ment.
1.3.Thespectaculardevelopmentsoftherecentpast,
theconsumerelectronicsindustry'slossofmarket
sharestoFarEastcompetitorsandcurrentproblemsin
thesemiconductor andcomputermarketsclearlysignal
theneedforcommonEuropeanactionintheseindus­
tries.2.2.The'ITandelectronicsindustry'coversthe
followingareasofproduction (basedonthedefinition
containedintheCommissionReport):components,
whicharethebasicelementsofanyelectronicequip­
mentorsystem,hardwareandsoftware,officecom­
municationssystems,industrialautomationandcon­
sumerelectronics .ThetermcoversECfirms,too.The
Committeefeelsthatthetelecommunications industry
shouldalsobeconsidered .Thedocumentsubmitted
barelytouchesonthisindustry,however.TheCom­
mitteenoteswithconsiderableinterestthattheCom­
missionisatpresentworkingonaseparateanalysisof
theEuropeantelecommunications industry.Itisthere­
foreexpectedthatseparatepolicyproposalswillbe
drawnupforthisarea,too,assoonaspossible.
2.OutlineoftheCommissionproposals—themarket
positionoftheelectronicsandITindustry
2.1.TheITandelectronicsindustryisoftwofold
importanceformodernindustrialstructures:itisa
considerablesourceofemploymentandproductionin
itsownright,butinaddition—andthisiswhatmakes
itinterestingintermsofindustrialstrategy—itisthe
providerofthebasictechnologiesusedinthegrowth2.3.ThemarketforITandelectronicproductscan
beexpectedtogrowmuchfasteroverthecoming
decadethanotherindustrialmarkets.European
demand,whichin1984absorbedaquarterofworld­
wideproduction,increasedthissharetoonethirdby
1989.Theestablishmentoftheinternalmarketwillgive
afurtherimpetustothegrowthoftheEuropeanmarket.
Analystsforecastfortheyear2000,asharpincreasein
demandforcomponents (+11%),informationtech­
nology(+11%)andconsumerelectronics (+4%).To
thiscanbeaddedtheabove-averagegrowthexpected
inthetelecommunications industry.
I1)SeeCommitteeOpinionontheCommissioncommunication
'Industrialpolicyinanopenandcompetitiveenvironment'
(doc.ESC1384/91).
(2)Seedoc.CC)M(90)556final.2.4.Thisgrowingdemandfortheproductsandser­
vicesoftheITandelectronicsindustryinEuropeisout
ofstepwiththelimitedsupply.Europe'sITand

NoC40/96 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities17.2.92
tryhasastrongpositionincustomlogicchips(ASIC).
TheEuropeanchipmanufacturers Philips,SGS-Thom­
sonandSiemenshoweverrankonly10th,12thand14th
respectivelyintheworld.Thecriticalthresholdof5%
oftheworldmarkethasstillnotbeenreachedbythese
Europeancompanies .electronicsproductioncoversabout75%ofconsump­
tion.Thecorresponding figureforJapanis140%.
Behindthisimbalanceliewidelydivergenttradebal­
ances.WhilstEurope'stradebalanceinelectronicprod­
uctsisindeficit,Japan'sisinsurplus.Thecomponents,
ITandconsumerelectronicssectorsaremainlyrespon­
sibleforEurope'sdeficit.Thisshouldnotblindustothe
facthoweverthatpartsofEurope'sITandelectronics
industryarehighlycompetitive .Onestrikingexample
istheelectronicinvestmentgoodssector,especially
industrialautomation ,controlandmeasurementengin­
eering,telecommunications andcommunications engin­
eering.Considerablestrideshavebeenmadeinthelast
fewyearsinsoftware.2.9.USfirmsleadininformationtechnology (com­
puter)products.Recently,however,Japaneseindustry
hasbeenmoreactiveinthisarea.Anactivetakeover
policy,e.g.thepurchaseofICLbyFujitsu,isclear
evidenceofJapaneseindustry'sintentionofgaininga
firmerfootholdintheITmarket.Europeancompanies
arenotonlyfacingcyclicaldifficulties,theyarealso
grapplingwithstructuralproblems,i.e.notonlydra­
maticchangesinproductranges(mainframes,mini­
computers,PCs,workstationsandlaptops)butalsothe
problemscurrentlybeingexperiencedatmajorfirms.
2.10.Unlikethemanufacturers ofcomputersand
peripherals,Europeansoftwarefirmshavearelatively
solidproductionstructure.However,theEuropean
softwareindustryislaggingwellbehindtheUSA,and
therearesignsthatJapanissteppingupitseffortsin
thisarea.2.5.Nonetheless,traditionalstrengthsandtechno­
logicalpotentialcannotalterthefactthattheEC'sIT
andelectronicsindustryhasconsiderableweaknesses
andshortcomings .Thisistrueinparticularofsemicon­
ductors,peripherals,informationtechnology (com­
puters)andconsumerelectronics.
—Japanaccountsfor49,5%ofsemiconductor pro­
duction,theUSAfor36,5%andEuropefor8,5%,
—computerperipherals (harddisks,printers,screens,
etc.)aremanufactured mainlyinJapan(40%of
worldproduction)ortoalesserextentintheUSA
(25%).Europe'sshareamountstoonlyabout15%,
—onlytwothirdsofEuropeandemandforinfor­
mationtechnology (computers)ismetbyEuropean
productionandnearly60%ofthiscomesfromUS­
ownedfirms.Recentlythissectorhaslostground
inEurope.2.11.Inconsumerelectronicstherearestilltwo
majorEuropeancompanieswithalargenumberof
subsidiaries,PhilipsandThomson.Otherwisethemar­
ketisdominatedbyJapaneseandKoreanfirms.Inthe
consumerelectronicssectorthetelevisionmarketin
particularisabouttoundergotechnologicalchange.
Expertsestimatethathighdefinitiontelevision(HDTV)
willopenupamarketworthmorethanECU100billion
overthenextfewdecades.Butapartfromthis,the
consumerselectronicsmarketisastrategicareaforthe
wholeelectronicsindustry,mainlybecauseitistheend­
userofalargeproportionofcomponentsandsemicon­
ductors.Itisthisverticalintegrationofthestagesof
productionwhichtheEuropeanelectronicsindus­
try—unliketheJapanese—lacks.Lossoftheconsumer
electronicssectorwouldhaveadamagingeffecton
otherareasoftheelectronicsindustry.2.6.TheCommunitytelecommunications industry
hasbeentraditionallystrong.AlcatelandSiemensare
dominantproducers.Andyetitistelecommunications
whichclearlyshowhowfragmentedtheEuropeanmar­
ketstillis.Thismakeseconomiesofscalefrommass
productionsubstantiallymoredifficult.
2.7.WithfirmslikeSiemens,Comau-Fiat,Renault,
GEC,etc,Europehasanumberofmajortrumpcards
inthefieldofindustrialautomation .Italsohasa
considerable numberofefficientsmallandmedium­
sizedfirms.2.12.TheproblemsofEurope'sITandelectronics
industryoutlinedherearenotsomuchcyclicalas
structural :
—Demandfactors2.8.Seriousweaknessesandshortcomingsareappar­
entaboveallinthestrategicsemiconductor ,infor­
mationtechnologyandconsumerelectronicssectors.
Japanesefirmsdominatethesemiconductor market,
withnearly90%oftheworld'sproductionofhigh­
capacitymemories,whilstthemicroprocessor market
isdominatedbyUSmanufacturers ,withover80%of
worldproduction.Ontheotherhand,Europeanindus­IncomparisonwiththeotherlargemarketsintheUSA
andJapan,theEuropeanmarketis,forhistorical

17.2.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC40/97
reasons,veryfragmented .Thismeansthateconomies
ofscalecanbeexploitedonlytoalimitedextent.And
thisinturnmeanhigherunitcosts.InthelightofthisbackgroundandanalysistheCom­
missionhasdrawnupafive-pointactionplan.Thisis
basedonthepremisethatthemeasuresneededto
improvethecompetitiveness oftheITandelectronics
industryshouldprimarilybelefttotheinitiativeand
responsibilityofthefirmsthemselves .TheCommunity
activities,whichareintendedtocomplementinitiatives
byfirms,coverthefollowingareas:—Productionstructure
ThereislessverticalintegrationinEurope'selectronics
firmsthaninUSandparticularlyJapanesefirms.This
appliesbothtotheverticalintegrationofthedifferent
stagesofproductionreferredtoaboveandtothestruc­
tureofproductionasregardsrelationsbetweenmanu­
facturersandusers.(i)Demand
Theaimhereistosetupcomputerizedtelecommuni­
cationslinksbetweenpublicadministrations asquickly
aspossibleandachieveahighlevelofinteroperability
ofinformationsystems.Theemphasiswillbeoninfra­
structureprojects. —Corporatestrategy
WhilstEuropeancompanieshavehighlydeveloped
technologicalskills,theydonotputenoughinnovative
productsonthemarketquicklyenough.Withregard
toinnovationandproduction,Europeanfirmshavenot
madeasmuchuseastheymighthavedoneofthe
opportunitiesforcooperationofferedbytheCom­
munity'smajortechnologyprogrammes,norhavethey
beenabletoimplementlong-termglobalstrategiesearly
enough.Thequestionarisesastowhetherresearchand
development (R&D)policyattheprecompetitive stage
hasnotbeentoolimited.(ii)Technology
HeretheCommission launchestheideaofasecond
generationofresearchandtechnologicaldevelopment
(R&TD)projects.Theseshouldrangefromprecom­
petitivebasicresearchtoprojectsgearedmoreclosely
tothemarket.
(iii)Training
Trainingmeasuresaretheobjectivehere.Theywould
betargetedmainlyattrainingstaffandstaffengagedin
productionandmanagementinfirms.TheCommission
hasalreadysubmittedspecificproposalsonthisques­
tioninitscommunication totheCouncilonTrans­
EuropeanNetworks(1).TheCommitteeispreparingan
Opiniononthiscommunication .—NationalandCommunityR&Dmanagement
BothJapanandtheUSAhaveatraditionoflong-term
promotionofR&DbytheState.InJapanthisisdone
bytheMinistryofInternationalTradeandIndustry
(MITI),andintheUSAtheelectronicsindustryreceives
heavybackingfromthePentagon.InEuropeR&D
programmescontinuetobefragmentedalongnational
lines.Onlyinthemid-1980swastheimportanceof
R&DrecognizedatEClevelandtranslatedinto
jointprojects.ThecoordinationofnationalandEC
researchprogrammesandtheefficiencywithwhich
researchfundsareusedstillleavemuchtobedesired.(iv)Externalrelations
HeretheCommissionisconcernedinparticularwith
thestillincompleteGeneralAgreementonTariffsand
Trade(GATT)UruguayRound.TheCommission
wouldliketoensureequalconditionsofcompetition
andofaccesstothirdmarkets.
—Distorsionsofcompetition
(v)Businessenvironment
Theobjectivehereisthecreationofamorefavourable
businessenvironment ,inparticular:byimproving
financingconditions(internalandexternal);coordinat­
ingstandards;involvingelectronicsandITdevelopment
morecloselyinstructuralpolicies;steppingupthe
dialoguebetweenpartiesinvolved,particularlysmall
andmedium-sizedenterprises.TheUnitedStatesandJapanhaveadoptedanumber
ofpoliticalmeasurestopromotedomesticindustry.
ThemeasurestakenintheUSAincludethelarge-scale
awardofcontractsbytheDepartmentofDefense.In
Japanforeignfirmsarealmostcompletelyexcluded
frompublicprocurementcontracts.Inaddition,there
aremeasurestoprovidefinanceonfavourableterms
andtocovertherisksinherentinlong-termprojects
andoperations.InEuropetootherehavebeenvarious
nationalsupportmeasureswhichhavedistortedcompe­
tition.Butwithcompletionoftheinternalmarketthe
conditionsofcompetitionbetweenhithertonational
marketswillbebroughtintoline,whileatthesametime
themarketwillbeopenedupmoretonon-Community
countries .()TowardsTrans-European NetworksforaCommunityAction
Programme [doc.COM(9Q)585final].

NoC40/98 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities17.2.92
theeventofdumpingsteppedup.Dumpingcannotbe
aformofcompetition .3.TheCommittee'sopinionsonabasisforindustrial
policyactivities
—Reciprocity
ThisdemandisaimedparticularlyattheJapanese.
ConditionshavetobecreatedontheJapanesemarket
whichareatleastequivalenttotheconditionswhich
Japaneseexportersandproducersencounteronthe
Europeanmarket.Thisappliesinparticulartothe
conditionsgoverningaccesstotechnology,investment,
financeanddistributionnetworks.3.1.TheCommitteethinksthatsuitableindustrial
policymeasuresareneededtoprovidetheEuropeanIT
andelectronicsindustrywithcompetitivestructures
andgoodjobprospectsofferinggoodworkingcon­
ditions.Atatimewhenthemajorworldmarketsof
theUSA,JapanandEuropearebeingreshaped,action
onlyatnationallevelwouldbeinadequate.Coordi­
natedEC-levelaction,agreedbetweenthevarioussocial
groups,isneededtosecurethecompetitivefutureofan
independentEuropeanITandelectronicsindustry.The
essentialaimistogivethecurrentpolicyofestablishing
asingleEuropeaninternalmarketasolidfoundation
bymeansofspecificindustrialpolicymeasuresto
improvethestrategicenvironmentforfirmsandthe
sectorasawhole.Fortheelectronicsindustryandits
workforcethesestrategicallyimportantconditionsneed
tobemetinthefollowingareas:researchandtech­
nology,infrastructure ,optimizingproductivecapacity,
trainingandskills.Butwhatisalsoneededisimproved
opportunitiesforcooperationbetweenfirmsboth
withintheCommunityandinthirdcountries.Inthis
respectitisstrikingthatemploymentpolicyandthe
sociallyandenvironmentally acceptableuseoftech­
nologyarebarelymentionedintheCommissionsfive­
pointactionplan(seepoint2.12above).TheCom­
mitteefeelsthereforethatactionshouldbetakeninthe
followingproblemareas.—Localcontent
Rulesgoverninglocalcontentareusefulfromtwo
pointsofview.Firstthereisthecompetitionaspect.
Anti-dumping rulesarecircumventedagainandagain
viadirectinvestmentsin'screwdriverfactories'instead
offullproductionfacilities.Inotherwordsonly
assemblyoperationsarebeingcarriedout.Thisdoes
notsolvethecompetitionproblem.Moreoveronthe
employmentfronttheproblemistwofold:Firstlythe
quantitiveaspect—fewerstaffareneededforassembly
thanforfullmanufacture .Secondlythequalitative
aspect:skillrequirementsarenotsohighinapure
assemblyplant.Forthesereasonsitwouldbeworth­
whilerequiringahighpercentageofaddedvalueinthe
Communityinthelongterm,withdueregardforthe
particularsituationofdisadvantaged regions.
3.2.Tradepolicy—GATTrules
TheCommunitymustalsopressforapplicationofthe
generalGATTrules.
3.2.3.TheCommitteeisawarethatthesetradepol­
icyinitiativesarenotadequatefortacklingthesector's
problemsinthelongtermandaresignificantonlyas
secondarymeasures.3.2.1.TheCommitteefeelsthattradepolicy
measuresshouldseekabalancebetweentheinterests
ofconsumersandproducers .
3.2.2.Theanalysisoftheproblemsoftheelectronics
sectorandpracticalexperiencein,forexample,the
USA,makeitclearthatrelyingontradepolicymeasures
alonewouldbeinsufficientandshort-sighted .Such
measures,whilstimportant,shouldbepartofabroader
policyembracingdemand,productionandtechnology.
Thefollowingtradepolicyprinciplesshouldinparticu­
larbeapplied:
—Anti-dumping3.3.Stabilizationoflong-termdemand
3.3.1.Theinfrastructure andpublicprocurement
policiesoftheEuropeancountriesandtheirpublic­
sectorinstitutionsmustdomoretostabilizethelong­
termdemandforITandelectronicsproducts.The
developmentofEurope'sinternalmarketmakes
improvingEurope'sinfrastructure amatterofurgency.
Harmonization oftelecommunications willbean
importantpartofthis.Herethereispotentielfuture
demand.Withintheframeworkofapublicprocure­
mentsystemopentoallEuropeanproducers,infrastruc­
tureprojectsinthefieldsoftelecommunications net­
works,transport,health,environmental improvement ,
educationandculturemustmakeamajorcontribution
tosecuringmarketsforEuropeanindustry.Theaim
ofsecuringequivalentmateriallivingconditionsinInthoseareaswherethepricepolicyofcompetitors
(particularlyJapanandtheSouth-EastAsiancountries)
clearlydistortscompetition ,theexistinganti-dumping
measuresmustbeappliedand,ifnecessary,intensified
withdueconsideration forGATTrules.Procedures
andanti-dumpingdecisionsshouldbemademoretrans­
parentandchecksandthemonitoringofsanctionsin

17.2.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC40/99
Europe'svariousregionsrequiresthatparticularatten­
tionandsupportbegiventoregionaldevelopmentin
theallocationofsuchprojects(*).
3.4.Firmsandproductioninthisindustryrequirescompetitorstofollownew
productsintothemarketasquicklyaspossiblewith
theirowncompetitiveproducts.Inthisway,pricing
canbeusedmoreeasilytoachievesufficientsales
revenuetoamortizeinvestmentandleaveanappropri­
ateprofitmargin.Suchmarketproblemscannot
howeverbesolvedbyprotectionisttradepolicy
measures.Whatisrequiredis,rather,anewproduct
policy,andthusR&Dpolicyandproductinnovation .
Butheremuchgreaterweightmustbegiventhanin
thepasttothesocial,ecologicalandcommunication
interestsofsociety.Thefollowingspecificfactorsare
involved.3.4.1.EuropeanITandelectronicsfirmsneedmore
efficientcorporateandproductionstructures.This
shouldbeachievedviameasuresdesignedto:
—improveverticalcooperationbetweenITandelec­
tronicsfirms.Closerrelationshipsbetweensmall,
medium-sizedandlargefirmsareneeded.Theinno­
vativestrengthsofsmallandmedium-sized
enterprisesshouldbeencouraged,
—developlinksbetweenproducersandusers.
Examplesofthisarerelationsbetweensoftwareand
hardwareproducersandthemanufactureofcustom
logicchips,
—promotecooperationonnewproductdevelopment
andtheuseofexistingtechnologyprogrammes ,—AlthoughEuropeanfirmshavetechnologicalskills,
theylackrapidproductinnovationandefficient
marketing.Customizeddevelopmentisofprimary
importance .Thisisachallengetofirmsandtheir
existingorganizational methods(systemsmanage­
ment).Availableresourcesanddevelopmentpoten­
tial(seealsopoint6)needtobeexploitedand
attentionpaidtoaregionalbalanceofdevelop­
mentcapacityinthecontextofcross-border
mergersandactivities.
—accelerateinternationalstandardization ,
—Itmustbetheaimofresearchandespecially
developmentpolicytoensurethatthenational
andEuropeanlevelscomplementeachotherand
thattherearemorecooperativeprojectsinEurope.
ResearchmanagementatEClevelhastobecome
moreefficient.Unproductiveduplicationofsup­
port(nationalandECfunding)hastobeprevented
bycoordinatingnationalandECprojectsmore
closely.—establishoptimumdevelopmentandproduction
capacitieswhilstmaintainingsocialstandards.This
isimportantforthecapital-intensive electronics
manufacturing sectorasitenablescompetitivecost
structurestobeestablished .Worthwhilecooper­
ation,e.g.onsemiconductors andHDTV,should
thereforebeencouraged,
—improvefinancingconditions (internalandexter­
nal),anotherrequirementifthesectoristoover­
comeitsproblems.Thiswouldincludeabanking
systemwillingandabletofacilitateaccesstobank
loansandtofinancehigh-riskinvestmentsinthe
futureonfavourableterms.Thisisofparticular
importanceforinnovativesmallandmedium-sized
enterprises .—Thesemiconductor sectorisatouchstonefora
coordinatedEuropeanR&Dpolicy.Semiconduc­
torsareabasiccomponentinalargeproportion
ofmanufactured capitalandconsumergoods.
Long-termECresearchprojectsshouldbeex­
pandedinordertostrengthentheEuropeanmarket
positionandmakegoodEurope'stechnological
lag.Broadenedalliancesandtechnologicalcooper­
ationshouldbeencouraged .
4.Technologyandinnovationpolicy
4.1.Rapidproductinnovationisafeatureofthe
ITandelectronicsindustry.Between60and70%of
productscurrentlyonthemarketweredevelopedin
thelasttenyears.Moreover,competitionandprice
considerations makeastrategyofinnovationessential
inthissector.Theshortlifecycleofmanyproducts—Theimpactoftechnologyshouldalsobecon­
sideredtoensurethatR&Dresultsarenot
onlyacommercialsuccessbutalsosociallyand
environmentally acceptable.Thisisparticularly
urgentinasectorwhoseproductshavefar­
reachingeffectsontheworkingconditionsof
employees,theenvironment (energy)andthecom­
municationinterestsofsociety.
(')SeeOpinion:Europe2000:Outlookforthedevelopment
oftheCommunity'sterritory,doc.ESC1127/91,25.9.1991.—Workersandtheirtradeunionsmustbeactively
involvedinR&Dpolicy.Onlyinthiswaywillit

NoC40/100 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 17.2.92
bepossibletoensurethatoptionsforhandling
technologyarekeptopenandgivendueconsider­
ation.toahighdegreeontheparticipationandmotivation
ofworkers.Aforward-looking trainingandemploy­
mentpolicyisthereforeessential.Forexample,we
nowknowthatintroductionofdigitaltechnologyfor
themanufactureofinformationtechnologysystems
cutsmanufacturing costsby50to70%,whilst
increasingdevelopmentcoststenfoldwithsoftware
costsrisingtoapprox.70%oftotaldevelopment
costs.Suchchangeswillmeanaclearshiftinemploy­
mentstructuresandskillprofiles.Bothfirmsand
generalvocationaltrainingneedtoadapttothese
changesinadvance.Thisisachallengetofirms,as
wellastoECandnationalinstitutions,inparticular
asregards:
—furtherin-servicevocationaltrainingbutalso
promotionofuseofexternaltrainingfacilities.In
thiswayvocationalskillscanbeimprovedanda
contributionmadetosecuringjobs.Inthecontext
ofalong-termpolicyforimprovingskills,particu­
larattentionshouldbepaidtoengineeringand
highereducationaltraining,5.DemandsonECpolicy
5.1.TheECisurgedtodevelopandmakefurther
useofsectoralandindustrialpolicyinstruments .The
MemberStatesshouldbasetheirnationalpolicieson
theindustrialpolicyconceptformulatedhere,and
ensurecoordination .Thesocialinterestgroupsmust
beinvolved.Theactionneededisoutlinedbelowon
thebasisofthesector'sproblems:
—harmonization ofinfrastructure (*)intheregions.
Inthiswaypotentialdemandcanbeactivatedby
publicprocurement ,
—greatercoordinationinestablishingcommonstan­
dards,
—defenceofcommoninterestsintradewithnon­
Communitycountries,
—theCommunityshouldnotonlyconsiderasecond
R&Dgenerationbutactuallysetupanew
programme .ThecoordinationofnationalR&D
measuresisneededinordertopreventunnecessary
duplicationofeffortanddistortionsofcompetition
betweentheMemberStates.Emphasisshouldbe
placedonthestrategicallyimportantareas,
—thepromotionofcommondevelopmentandappli­
cationplatformsforsoftware.TheCommission's
proposalforaEuropeansoftwareinstituteopen
tomanufacturers ,softwarehouses,researchinsti­
tutions,etc.shouldbefollowedup,
—promotionofregionaldevelopmentandbalance
intheallocationofR&Dfunds(geographical
locationtobeconsideredinallocatingresearch
funds!),
—coordinationoftrainingandemploymentpolicy
activities.—theneedforaforward-looking employmentpolicy
inthesector.Thisincludesnotonlytheplanning
ofskillpotentialreferredtoabovebutalso
ensuringaregionalemploymentbalance.Current
productionchangesintheITandelectronics
industryshowwomenbeingparticularlyaffected
bychangesinthestructureofemployment ;tar­
getedmeasuresmustthereforebeadoptedto
promotefemaleemployment ,
—thecentralstrategicimportanceofR&Dforthe
futureofthesectormakesitessentialthat,in
additiontotheindustry,workersandtheirorgan­
izationsbealsoinvolvedandenabledtoparticipate
inECresearchprojects,
—wherethereiscross-bordercooperationbetween
firms,workersshouldbeinformedof,consulted
onandinvolvedincertaindecisionsbyfirms—at
leasttotheextentadvocatedbytheCommittee
inconnectionwiththeEuropeanCompany,
6.Employmentandtrainingpolicy
6.1.Newandtechnologically demandingproducts,
productqualityandprocessinnovationsaredependent—detaileddiscussionbetweenrepresentatives of
industry,workersandtheCommissiononfuture
employmentandproductiontrendsinthissectorof
theeconomyandtheirconsequences .Anobvious
solutionwouldbetosetupaEuropean-wide
workingpartyforthispurpose.
(')Seedoc.CC)M(90)585final.Commission Communi­
cation—TowardsTrans-European NetworksforaCom­
munityActionProgramme .6.2.Commoncoordinated measuresmustbe
adoptedassoonaspossibletosafeguardthefuture
oftheEuropeanITandelectronicsindustry.The

17.2.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC40/101
CommitteeconsidersthattheECandtheMemberproposalsandapplytheminestablishingtheenviron
Statesshould,asamatterofurgency,adoptthesementfortheactivityoffirms.
DoneatBrussels,28November1991.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
FrancoisSTAEDELIN
OpinionontheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveontheadoptionofstandardsforsatellite
broadcastingoftelevisionsignals
(92/C40/24)
On30July1991theCouncildecidedtoconsulttheEconomicandSocialCommittee,under
Article100AoftheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity,onthe
abovementioned proposal.
TheSectionforIndustry,Commerce,CraftsandServices,whichwasresponsibleforpreparing
theCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon6November1991,inthelight
oftheReportbyMrNoordwal.
Atits291stplenarysession(meetingof28November1991)theEconomicandSocial
CommitteeadoptedthefollowingOpinionbyalargemajorityvoteinfavourand2votes
against,with9abstentions .
1.Introductoryremarks
1.1.ThedraftDirectiveisputforwardtoprovide
continuityaftertheexpiryon31December1991ofthe
ECDirectivewhichiscurrentlyvalid—86/529/EEC(1).
ThispreviousDirective,adoptedunderArticle100of
theTreaty,i.e.byunanimousvoteofMemberStates
intheCouncil—andapprovedbyapositiveandunani­
mousOpinionoftheCommittee(2)—requiredMember
StatestoensureuseoftheMACPacketfamilyasthe
onlystandardpermittedintheCommunityfordirect
operationalsatellitetelevisionbroadcasting .
1.2.ThepresentdraftDirectiveseeksbothtotake
theplaceofthepreviousoneforthenexttenyears
andtoextendittocovernotonlyhigh-powerDirect
BroadcastingSatellites(DBS)asbeforebutalsolow­
powerFixedServiceSatellites(FSS)whichwereleft
asideintheearlierDirectivebecauseatthetimethese
satelliteswerethoughttohaveinsufficientpowertoprovidedirecthomereception.Indoingsoitprovides,
however,(Art.3)thatexistingsatelliteservicesusing
D-MAC,PALorSECAMstandardsforthehabitual
625line4:3formattransmissionsmaycontinueindefi­
nitely.
1.3.TheMACPacketfamilyofstandardshasbeen
developedinEuropetoallowfortheintroductionof
HighDefinitionTV(HDTV)—viz.1250lines,16:9
format—inthefuturewhileallowingforthemaximum
possibledegreeofcompatibility e.g.soastoavoid
necessarilyreplacingallexistingtelevisionsetsand
equipment.AssuchtheCommitteehasexpressedin
thepast(3)its'strongsupportforthedevelopmentof
EuropeanstandardsinHDTV'andinparticularfor
theEurekaEU95Projectasthe'standardcapableof
introducingHDTVwithoutmakingexistingsetsand
equipmentobsolete'.
t1)OJNoL311,6.11.1986.
(2)OJNoC189,28.7.1986.(3)ESCOpinionontheProposalforaCouncilDecisiononHigh
DefinitionTelevision(OJNoC159,26.6.1989,p.34).