Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL revising Annex I of Decision No 1336/97/EC on a series of guidelines for trans-European telecommunications networks

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

Article 14 of Decision No 1336/97/EC of the European Parliament and the Council ("the Decision") requires the Commission to submit proposals for revision of Annex I to the Decision (Identification of Projects of Common Interest) on the basis of technical developments and experience gained.

The same article requires that a report evaluating the results achieved be submitted to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. That report [COM(2001)nnn] drew on an external evaluation of the TEN-Telecom programme, and took into account the Court of Auditors special report 9/2000.

The main orientations from the Court of Auditors special report and the external evaluation, with implications for the revision of Annex I, are as follows:

Main recommendations from Court of Auditors special report 9/2000

* The Commission's replies to the Court of Auditors report agreed to give greater emphasis to the trans-European dimension of the Programme (p.20, 10(v)).

* The Court of Auditors report stressed the need to avoid undue overlap with the Information Society Technologies programme and other sources of Community funding.

* The Commission's replies to the Court of Auditors report stressed the need to focus the Program. In particular, the list of areas in Annex I was felt to be too large and complex. The Commission suggested that the Programme could be focused toward the priorities of the eEurope initiative.

Main conclusions from the external evaluation

* the external evaluation found that the TEN-Telecom programme continues to be relevant particularly with respect to the objectives of eEurope.

* the relatively large number of areas of interest may prevent significant gains being achieved.

* the trans-European dimension of TEN-Telecom is an important added value.

Implications for the revision of Annex I

Based on these orientations, current significant technological developments and experience gained from running the Programme, the following proposals have been put forward for the revision of Annex I.

* Greater emphasis will be given to the trans-European dimension by an explicit definition in Annex I.

* Annex I will distinguish TEN-Telecom from the Information Society Technologies programme. The revised Annex I will emphasise the market position of TEN-Telecom to encourage the submission of proposals implementing innovative services in the public interest. Annex I will reflect a drive to provide more support for services used by public administrations. Services will be provided by the public sector or public-private sector partnerships.

* Annex I will focus the Programme around the strategic priorities of the eEurope initiative. The list of areas has been revised on the basis of experience of the Programme so far and taking into account the recommendations of the external evaluation.

Increased focus

The list of areas will be reduced. The new list of areas takes account of the priorities of eEurope and the potential overlap between TEN-Telecom and the Information Society Technologies programme. In this respect, support for research infrastructures will be withdrawn as will support for generic content services (translation, speech recognition, etc) as these will be covered by the eContent programme.

Emphasis on public services

There will be more focus on the deployment of public services. In this respect, TEN-Telecom will promote eGovernment and eAdministration on a local, regional and national level for services in areas of significant trans-European value including education and the environment. Support will also be provided for integration of services.

Focused support interoperation and interconnection of networks

The current Annex I specifies a variety of areas for basic networks. The revised Annex I will provide support for the interconnection and interoperability of networks underpinning the operation of a specific application or service. There will be no further support for specific technologies such as Euro-ISDN and ATM.

New area for mobile services

Support will be provided for advanced mobile technologies to meet the objectives of the European Union on third generation mobile communications. Future generation mobile communication has the potential to expand the Internet on a massive scale contributing to a more inclusive information society. This expansion will have significant implications in terms of the development of mobile commerce and the introduction of new high quality multimedia services of common interest. In the present uncertain financial climate, TEN-Telecom will provide support for future generation mobile services.

New area for network security

In line with the Commission policy on network security, following from the conclusion of the Stockholm European Council, TEN-Telecom will support trust and confidence services enhancing network security and the co-ordination of national initiatives on a European level.

In support of national efforts to strengthen CERT systems, TEN-Telecom will provide support for strengthening co-operation within the European Union including concrete proposals for effective networking.

Financial Implications

In order to encourage more deployment projects it shall be necessary to increase the financial incentives up to 20% of the total investment costs in areas of public interest where there are intrinsic barriers caused by differing administrative systems, languages and cultures. These incentives will be targeted at Applications and certain Generic Services facing such difficulties. The financial implications will be dealt with in the context of the proposal for an amendment of the TEN financial regulation.

Adjustment of Comitology procedures conformant to Council Decision no 1999/468/EC

In line with the Council and Commission statement (statement no 2 of Declarations on Council Decision 1999/468/EC [1]), Article 8(2) is amended to introduce the regulatory procedure.

[1] OJ C 203 17.7.1999, p. 1

In the light of the above mentioned considerations, the Commission proposes that the European Parliament and the Council revise the identification of projects of common interest set out in Annex 1 to the Decision by adopting this decision.

2001/0296 (COD)

Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL revising Annex I of Decision No 1336/97/EC on a series of guidelines for trans-European telecommunications networks

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 156 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission [2],

[2] OJ C , , p. .

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee [3],

[3] OJ C , , p. .

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions [4],

[4] OJ C , , p. .

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the treaty,

Whereas:

(1) Article 14 of Decision No 1336/97/EC of the European Parliament and the Council requires the Commission to submit a report every three years on the implementation of the Decision to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions;

(2) The Commission submitted this report on [.....];

(3) Article 14 of Decision No 1336/97/EC of the European Parliament and the Council requires the Commission to submit appropriate proposals for revision of Annex I on the basis of technical developments and experience gained;

(4) The Court of Auditors Special Report No 9/2000 made recommendations which have been addressed in the report of the Commission;

(5) In its Communication on a Commission Initiative for the Special European Council of Lisbon, 23 and 24 March 2000 the Commission set out the eEurope initiative emphasising the social dimension of the Information Society;

(6) Annex I of Decision No 1336/97/EC of the European Parliament and the Council should therefore be revised accordingly,

(7) Since the measures necessary for the implementation of this Decision are measures of general scope within the meaning of Article 2 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission [5], they should be adopted by use of the regulatory procedure provided for in Article 5 of that Decision

[5] OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

1. Article 8(2) is replaced by the following

'2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, the regulatory procedure laid down in Article 5 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, in compliance with Article 7 (3) and Article 8 thereof.

3. The period provided for in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be three months.'

2. Annex I to Decision No 1336/97/EC of the European Parliament and the Council shall be replaced by Annex I of this decision:

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels,

For the European Parliament For the Council The President The President

ANNEX

IDENTIFICATION OF PROJECTS OF COMMON INTEREST

Trans-European telecommunications networks will introduce innovative trans-European services in the general interest. The services will contribute to the development of the information society in terms of growth, employment, social cohesion and participation for all in the knowledge based economy.

TEN-Telecom supports the technical and commercial feasibility, validation, and deployment of services. Services must be innovative, trans-European and based on proven technology:

- a service may be launched in separate member states with appropriate adaptation in each state.

- a service that has already been deployed in a single member state may be extended to other member states.

- a service may be implemented in a single member state of demonstrably trans-European interest.

Whilst a service should be trans-European, it may be launched by one or more organisations based in a single member state. The participation of organisations from more than one member state will however be encouraged.

In this context, projects of common interest shall be identified on the basis of their operational capability to support the objectives laid down in this Decision.

The projects of common interest described below shall be on three levels, forming a coherent structure.

- Applications

Applications serve user needs, taking into account cultural and linguistic differences and the requirements of disabled people. Where it is applicable, they shall accommodate the specific needs of less developed or less populated regions

- Generic Services

Generic Services shall support applications' common requirements by providing common tools for the development and implementation of new applications based on interoperable standards. They shall provide services for the transfer and integrity of data across networks.

- Interconnection and Interoperability of networks

Support will be provided for the interconnection, interoperability and security of networks underpinning the operation of specific public interest applications and services.

The following sections identify at each level of the trans-European networks the projects of common interest that must be specified in accordance with Article 9 and under the procedure laid down in Article 8.

1. Applications

- eGovernment and eAdministration: more efficient, interactive, and integrated governmental services constitute a major opportunity of the information society. Services will be supported at all levels, European, national, regional and local, such as those for electronic procurement, tourism, personal security, and business support for SME's. Environmental applications and services will be supported for surveillance, monitoring and information access. Services may be provided by, or with the support of, public authorities as a service in the public interest benefiting citizens and SME's.

- Health: Health telematics networks and services offer significant opportunities for the improvement of access and quality of care, as well as containing the cost of health expenditure caused by medical advances and demographic changes. Innovative services will be supported linking health care institutions and other points of care, and providing health services directly to the public, in particular supporting actions on disease prevention and health promotion.

- Disabled and elderly: developments in network communications offer significant opportunities for the participation of older people and people with disabilities in the information society. Network applications and services addressing their specific needs are able to contribute to the overcoming of socio-economic, geographical and cultural barriers. Services will be supported catering for the requirements of older people and people with disabilities with the purpose of promoting their full integration and participation in the information society.

- Learning and culture: high levels of education, training and cultural awareness are crucial to economic development and social cohesion. Their importance will continue to be underlined in future with the increasing influence of technology in the information society. Services will be supported providing new innovative ways of presenting educational and cultural information, including services for life-long-learning.

2. Generic services

- Advanced mobile services: Trails are underway on the interoperability aspects of innovative applications for 2.5-3G mobile networks. They will establish the basis for advanced end-to-end solutions in the mobile environment providing location based, personalised, and context sensitive services. Support will be provided for the launch of advanced mobile applications and services in the general interest including those for navigation and guidance, traffic and travel information, network security and billing, m-commerce, m-business and mobile work, learning and culture, emergency services and health.

- Trust and confidence services: the active involvement of businesses and citizens in the information society is dependent on their trust and confidence in the available services. Security is therefore a priority issue presenting a major challenge for the future. Support will be provided for services in the public interest aimed at all aspects of security including co-operation for effective networking within the European Union on national CERT systems.

3. Interconnection and interoperability of networks

- Interconnection and interoperability: the interconnection and interoperability of networks is a pre-requisite for effective trans-European services. Support will be provided for the interconnection, interoperability and security of networks necessary for the operation of specific public interest services. Projects concerning the development and enhancement of telecommunications networks will receive particular scrutiny to ensure that there is no interference with free market conditions.

4. Supplementary support and co-ordination actions

In addition to its support for projects of common interest, the Community shall initiate actions aimed at providing the appropriate environment for the realisation of the projects. The actions will contribute to programme awareness, consensus development and concerted efforts concerning European, national, regional and local activities for stimulation and promotion of new applications and services, in conformity with the implementation of programmes in other areas, as well as the development of broadband networks. They will involve consultation with European standardisation and strategic planning bodies and co-ordination with actions funded by the different Community financial instruments, including:

- strategic studies toward target specifications, and transition towards these targets. These specifications will help sector actors to make sound economic investment decisions,

- definition of means of accessing broadband networks,

- establishment of common specifications based on European and world standards,

- furthering co-operation among sector actors, including public and private partnerships (PPP).

- co-ordination of the activities undertaken under this Decision with related Community and national programmes.