Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION adopting a multi-annual Community programme to stimulate the development of a European multimedia content industry and to encourage the use of multimedia content in the emerging information society (INFO 2000)
Date: 1995-06-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, EU programme, communications industry, competitiveness, culture industry, information technology

it 

* 

COMMISSION  OF THE  EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Brussels,  30.06.1995 
COM(95)  149  final 

95/0156  (CNS) 

COMMUNICATION  FROM THE COMMISSION 

to the European Parliament and the Council 
concerning a multi-annual Community programme 
to stimulate the development of a European multimedia content industry 
and to encourage the use of multimedia content in the emerging information society 
(INFO2000) 

Proposal for a 
COUNCIL DECISION 

adopting a multi-annual Community programme 
to stimulate the development of a European multimedia content industry 
and to encourage the use of multimedia content in the emerging information society 
(INFO2000) 

If 

(presented by the Commission) 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE  COMMISSION 

to the European Parliament and the Council 
concerning a multi-annual Community  programme 
to stimulate the development of a European multimedia content industry 
and to encourage the use of multimedia content in the emerging information  society 
(INFO2000) 

1* 

TABLE OF CONTENT 

0. Definitions 

1.INFO2000: The political context 

2. The nature of the content industry and market 

2.1.  The changing business environment 
2.2.  The strategic importance of the content industry 

2.3.  Europe's competitive position 

3. The way forward 

3.1.  Objectives  and actions 
3.2.  Addressing obstacles to growth 
3.3.  Participants 
3.4.  Selection of projects.. 
4. Concluding remarks 

, 

ANNEX 1 : 
ANNEX 2: 

SUMMARY OF INFO2000 ACTIONS 
LIST OF ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATION S 

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0. 

DEFINITIONS 

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY CONTENT ? 

Content  is  defined  in this  communication  as  data,  text,  sound,  images  or  multimedia 
combinations thereof, represented  in analogue or digital format  on a variety  of carriers 
such as paper, microfilm, magnetic or optical storage. 

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY THE CONTENT INDUSTRY? 

The content  industry is involved in three main activities: 

creation 
development 

• 
• 
•  packaging and distribution of content-based  products and  services 

The different  segments of the industry are: 

•  print publishing (newspapers, books, magazines, corporate  publishing) 

• 

electronic  publishing  (on-line  databases,  videotex  services,  audiotex  services,  fax-
and CD-based  services, video games) 

• 

the audiovisual industry (television, video, radio, audio and cinema). 

The content industry is the single most important  sector, both in terms of market value 
and  employment,  within  the  information  industry  at  large,  which  includes  the 
telecommunications  equipment and services, computer  systems and services,  consumer 
electronics and office  equipment industries. 

WHAT IS THIS COMMUNICATION  ABOUT? 

The focus of this communication is on the transition from  print to  electronic publishing 
and on the interactive multimedia information  services that  are rapidly emerging. 

This  communication  does  not  address  those  specific  questions  relating  to  the 
audiovisual industry, which are the subject  of specific  policy measures (Action plan  for 
the  introduction  of  advanced  television  services  in Europe,  MEDIA  programmes  and 
'Television  without  frontiers'  Council  Directive). 
INFO2000  complements  other 
Community  programmes  under  the  Fourth  Framework  Programme  (especially  IT, 
ACTS  and  TELEMATICS)  and  those  addressing  the  cultural  (RAPHAËL),  SME 
(Integrated  Programme  in  favour  of  SMEs  and  the  Craft  sector)  and  education  and 
training (SOCRATES, LEONARDO)  domains. 

1c 

1. 

INFO2000: THE POLITICAL  CONTEXT 

The content industry — one of the key dimensions of the information  society 

The  vision  of  a  global  networked  economy  and  information  society  in  which 
information  and  communication  technologies  and  services  play  a  crucial  role  in 
transforming  all  aspects  of  economic  and  social  life  is now  at  the  heart  of  the  global 
political agenda. 

Content,  in  all  its  forms,  is  the  vital  raw  material  of  the  information  society.  This 
communication  therefore  deals  with  a  key  dimension  of  the  European  information 
society: the future  development of the content industry in Europe. 

The  need  for  political  action  at European level to  support  Europe's  transition  to  the 
information  society has been widely recognised: 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

in  the  White  Paper  "Growth,  competitiveness,  employment:  the  challenges  and 
ways forward  into the 21st century" 

in  the  Bangemann  report  "Europe  and  the  global  information  society  -
Recommendations to the European Council" 

at the Corfu  and Essen  Summits 

in the Commission's Action Plan  "Europe's Way to the Information  Society" 

at the successful Brussels G7 Conference  devoted to the information  society. 

The content  industry is a crucial sector for the European  economy  and  society,  for  at 
least three reasons: 

1.  It 

is  important 

in  terms  of  employment.  It  provides  knowledge-intensive 
employment  to  over  2  million  employees  in  Europe,  realising  a  yearly  turnover 
estimated  at  ECU  150  billion  in  1994.  The  growth  in  this  market  is  considerably 
above average growth rates and is set to remain so for years ahead. 

2.  Information  services  are  key  to  improving  the  competitiveness  of  the  European 
economy  as  information  increasingly  becomes  a  major  factor  in  determining  the 
efficiency  and productivity of enterprises and administrations worldwide. 

3.  Information  services  are  important  carriers  of  Europe's  cultural  identity  and 
linguistic  diversity.  The  free  flow  of  information  supports  the  proper  functioning 
of our democracies and, of course, the further  development of the single market. 

The  content  industry's  role  will  become  even  more  vital  in  the  future  because  the 
expanding  information  infrastructure  will  fuel  the  demand  for  high  quality,  easily 
accessible  and  usable  information  services  and  will  increase  the  opportunities 
for 
knowledge-intensive  employment. 

I 

The key issue is whether the European content industries will succeed in exploiting the 
opportunities created by the emerging information highways. 

Although  basically  strong  and  healthy,  the  European  content  industry  faces  some 
comparative  disadvantages: 

•  Telecommunication costs in Europe are higher than in other parts of the world 

•  The  European  multimedia  market  lags  behind  the  US  by  3-5  years  and  remains 

fragmented  through linguistic and cultural  differences 

•  Trading  of  multimedia  rights  and  access  to  and  exploitation  of  Europe's  public 

sector information  are more complex than elsewhere in the world. 

•  Many  content  providers  are  nationally  or  regionally  oriented,  while  the  single 

market does not yet fully function  in this domain. 

Therefore,  action is needed  at the European level to mitigate these drawbacks. Europe 
must  act  quickly  and  vigorously  to  ensure  favourable  conditions  for  the  development 
of its content industry and to foster  its global competitiveness. 

An integrated  and co-ordinated  approach at the European  level 

Important  steps are already being undertaken by the Union to  create the  preconditions 
for a thriving content industry: 

•  The  liberalisation  of  telecommunications  networks  and  services  by  1  January 
1998 will facilitate the distribution of content and drive distribution costs down. 

•  A  clear  and  stable  regulatory  framework,  particularly  in  relation  to  intellectual 
property rights and privacy protection, will ensure protection of rights and people. 

•  Research  and  Technological  Development  (RTD)  on  applications  of  public 

interest is being supported in the Fourth Framework Programme. 

To complement these actions, INFO2000 aims at stimulating the  emerging  multimedia 
content  industry  (a large  part  of which  comprises  small and  often  new  enterprises)  to 
recognise  and  exploit  the  new business  opportunities  that  will be  created.  Its  focus  is 
on the transition from print  to  electronic  publishing  and  on the  interactive  multimedia 
information  services that are emerging. 

The actions of INFO2000 take a dual approach: firstly, building on the basic  strengths 
of Europe's  content  industry,  and  secondly  addressing  some of the  weaknesses  of the 
content industry and market in Europe. 

To ensure that the actions fit into the global context,  specific  attention will be given to 
linking  them  to  the  recent  Group  of  Seven  (7  most  industrialised  nations  -  G7) 
3 

initiatives  and  to  the  relevant  activities  of  international  organisations  such  as  the 
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development  (OECD), the World  Trade 
Organisation  (WTO),  World  Intellectual  Property  Organisation  (WIPO)  and  the 
Council of Europe. 

2. 

THE NATURE OF THE CONTENT INDUSTRY AND MARKET 

2.1.  THE CHANGING BUSINESS  ENVIRONMENT 

Structural  changes  are taking  place  in the  information  industry  with  unprecedented 
speed: 

• 

• 

the  rapid  progress 
technologies (ICT) 

in  the  development  of  information  and  communication 

the continuing improvement  in the performance  and the reduction  in prices of these 
technologies 

• 

the development and increased availability of new applications 

• 

the  blurring  of  boundaries  between  historically  distinct  sectors  of  the  content 
industry  (like  print  publishing,  electronic  publishing,  audiovisual)  as  content  is 
increasingly produced in digital form. 

These structural changes are having the following  effects: 

•  New players  are entering the market 

New  players,  often  from  other  parts  of 
the information  value-chain like distribution  (telecom  operators)  or  end-user  access 
(computer,  consumer electronics or software  companies),  are entering what used  to 
be the exclusive domain of the content  providers 

•  High  capacity distribution channels 

(high  capacity 
'pipelines'  and  ultra  fast  switches)  and  compression  techniques  (ability  to  'squeeze' 
information  in  digital  form)  are  turning  previously  scarce  delivery  channels  into  a 
commodity,  soon to be in plentiful  supply 

technology 

Broadband 

•  Increased international  competition 

Globalisation  of  electronic  publishing 
market,  coupled with deregulation,  is increasing international  competition  in, up till 
now, mainly national or regional content markets 

•  It is more difficult to protect  intellectual property  rights 

of 
intellectual property rights - the  main  instrument  to  ensure  fair  rewards  for  those 
who create new content - is no longer self evident 

Protection 

•  More choice and more independence for  the user 

Interactivity made possible 

1 

by producing  or  converting  content  into  digital form  (which  can then be  processed 
by a computer)  and  market  segmentation  increase the  choice  for  the  user  and  give 
him/her the ability to manipulate directly the information  services that are  offered. 

The  many  take-overs,  mergers,  joint  ventures  and  strategic  alliances  taking  place, 
particularly in Europe and in the US, between the different  communications  and media-
related  businesses,  are a clear  proof  of the  changing  environment  the  content  industry 
will be facing in the years to come. 

2.2.  THE STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF THE CONTENT INDUSTRY 

The importance  of the content industry now and in the future  can be illustrated  by the 
scope and size of its employment,  sales, value creation, and trade position. 

Scope 

Content-related  activities  cover  a  whole  chain  whereby  value  is  added  during  the 
various steps in the process from source material to end-user.  Creators,-developers  and 
packagers of the 'raw material'  fuel the chain. Distributors provide the on- and  off-line 
delivery  mechanisms  allowing  end-user  access  by  a  variety  of  terminal  devices  and 
networks. The table on the next page illustrates this. 

In  addition,  information  is  every  business's  second  business.  Different  parts  of  the 
information  value-chain  can be found  in other  industrial  sectors,  since most  economic 
or commercial activities involve the handling of information. 

Employment  and sales 

The content industry  is a big generator  of revenue  and jobs.  Estimates  of the  content 
industry  in  the  European  Union  suggest  a  1994  turnover  of  around  150  BECU, 
employing over 2 million people.  Content-related  activities have historically  generated 
growth  rates  in  turnover  and  employment  well  above  average  for  the  overall  EU 
economy. 

The economic importance of the content  industry within the EU  can also be illustrated 
by  comparing  it  with  the  1994  sales  and  employment  levels  of  some  related  sectors: 
telecommunications  (133  BECU;  1.2  million  full-time  employees), 
information 
technology  (113  BECU;  0.96  million  full-time  employees)  and  consumer  electronics 
(43 BECU;  0.32  million full-time  employees).  Estimates  for  the US  1994  multimedia 
market  at  large  value  the  content  industry  at  US$  255  Billion,  as  against  the 
telecommunications  sector at US$  160 Billion and the information  technology  sector at 
US$  151 Billion. 

If the revenue  and employment  associated  with information  activities  in other  industry 
sectors are included in this analysis, content becomes an even more significant  activity. 

f 

THE INFORMATION VALUE CHAIN 

Shaded areas indicate the focus  of INFO2000 

ACTIVITY 

SOURCE 
CREATION 

CONTENT 
DEVELOPMENT 

PACKAGING 

DISTRIBUTION 

END-USER 
ACCESS 

EFFECTS OF USE 

Industry 
Commerce 
Administration 
Services 
Education  and training 
Consumers 
Citizens 

Magnetic media 
Optical media 
Cable networks 
Telephone  networks 
Mobile networks 
Satellite networks 
Paper 

Game consoles 
Set-top boxes 
PCs 
TVs 
Fax 
Mobile terminals 

Growth 
Compe titiven ess 
Employment 
Better  lifestyle 
Better public  service 
Better education 

-48% 

UP 

-38% 

DOWN 

-14% 

CONSTANT 

N.A. 

UP 

Images 
Text 
Graphics 
Music 
Sound 
Code 
Statistics 

ACTORS 
e g. 

OBJECTS 
e g. 

VALUE 
ADDED 

SHARE 

TREND 

& 

Value creation 

Content  accounts  for  a  major  share  of  the  total  value  added  generated  in  the 
information  value  chain.  Some  private  strategic  studies  estimate  that  at  present  the 
share  of  content  in  the  total  value  added  is  around  48%.  Distribution  activities  and 
end-user equipment generate some 38% and  14% respectively  of total value added. 

Due  to  increased  competition  and  capacity  in  the  distribution  sector  and  wider 
availability of distribution channels and delivery platforms,  the relative share of content 
in the information  value chain is expected  to  grow  even further.  Recent  market  trends 
and various studies support this expectation. 

Trade position 

The trading position of the European content  industry is variable and contrasts with the 
trading position of the IT and consumer electronics sector: 

•  The  audiovisual  sector,  although  strong  in  some  areas  such  as  music,  has  a 
negative  and  deteriorating trade balance  overall,  estimated  at  -3.1 BECU  with the 
US  for  1994.  The  problems  of  the  audiovisual  sector  have  a  marked  structural 
component,  which  is  receiving  growing  attention  and  is  the  subject  of  a  separate 
communication.1 

•  The  computer  and  office  equipment  ard  consumer  electronics  sectors  have 
significant  and growing negative trade balances,  evolving from -8.8 BECU  in  1983 
to-26 BECU in 1993. 

•  The traditional  European  publishing  indu^i  y  has  a positive  and  improving  trade 
balance with the rest  of the world,  growing  from  1.2  BECU  in  1983  to  2.1  BECU 
in  1993. The strong trading position in publishing has to be built upon,  especially as 
print  publishing  in  its  present  form  will  be  among  the  key  sectors  affected  by  the 
move towards electronic publishing. 

•  An active policy as proposed in the INFO2000 programme is all the more  important 
because  many  indicators  show  that,  within  specific  segments  of  the  emerging 
electronic publishing markets, Europe's  position is weakening. 

2.3. 

EUROPE'S  COMPETITIVE  POSITION 

]] 

The European Union's content sector possesses many strengths: 

•  overall market  size and population 
• 
•  a long-established  publishing  tradition 

the presence of world-ranking information  and media  conglomerates 

COM(94)523 of 8 February 1995  'Audiovisual Policy. Stimulating dynamic growth in the European 
programme industry (MEDIA2 1996-2000)' 

7-

•  a rich content base 
• 
•  a rich cultural and linguistic diversity. 

large established  markets in key industrial sectors 

But, as said before (page 3), it also suffers from important weaknesses: 

•  more fragmented  markets along cultural, linguistic and national lines 
•  more expensive telecommunication  services, particularly transnational 
•  more difficult  access to and exploitation of public sector  information 
•  substantially lower demand for  advanced information  services 
•  most content providers are nationally or regionally  oriented. 

Considering  Europe's  competitive  position  in  terms  of  electronic  publishing  and 
infrastructure  in  the  global  context,  it  is  vital  that  the  position  of  European  content 
providers be strengthened. Action must be focused  on: 

•  stimulating the necessary structural adjustments  of the industry 
•  mobilising demand, particularly at the European level 
•  exploiting the full potential of the single market. 

THE EU AND THE US  COMPARED 

In  1994  revenues  of the US  electronic  information  sector  were  more  than 

Revenues 
two and a half times the revenues of EU-based companies. 
Equipment 
The  US  is  considerably  ahead  in  terms  of  the  penetration  of  information 
technology  equipment  such  as  cable  TV,  personal  computers  (PCs)  and  modems  (for 
linking PCs to telecommunications  networks). 
High tariffs  for  the  use  of  infrastructure  inevitably  have  a  negative  impact 
Tariffs 
on the use and development  of multimedia  content.  Tariffs  for  high capacity  infrastructure 
in  the  EU  are  on  average  10  times  higher  than  for  equivalent  capacity  over  equivalent 
distances in North America. 
Telephone  use  The number of telephone calls per person per year in the EU is just  over a 
quarter of those in the US, even though a similar number of people have phones. 

3. 

THE WAY  FORWARD 

3.1A  OBJECTIVES 

The  proposed  actions  serve  three  long-term  strategic  objectives  (see  box  below). 
These  objectives  aim  at  maintaining,  extending  and  exploiting  Europe's  strength  in 
content  whilst  narrowing  the  gap  with  our  competitors.  They  are  designed  to 
encourage an integrated  development  across the European Union. 

£ 

OBJECTIVES 

facilitating the development of the European content  industry 

optimising the contribution of new information  services to  growth, 
competitiveness and employment in Europe 

maximising the contribution of advanced information  services to the 
professional,  social and cultural development of the citizens of Europe. 

3.1B  ACTIONS 

In working towards  the  objectives  of INFO2000,  the weaknesses  indicated  above will 
be tackled in an integrated  and co-ordinated  manner,  along three  action  lines (see box 
below).  These  actions  aim  at  accelerating  market  uptake  of  multimedia  products  and 
services; at unleashing the economic and cultural potential of public sector-information; 
and  at  strengthening  the  international  and  pan-European  dimension  of  the  emerging 
European multimedia  content  industry.  They are described  in  detail  in Annex  1 to  the 
Council  Decision  establishing  INFO2000  and  summarised  in  Annex  1  to  this 
Communication. 

ACTION LINES 

stimulating demand and raising  awareness 

exploiting Europe's public sector  information 

triggering European multimedia potential 

3.2.  ADDRESSING  OBSTACLES  TO  GROWTH 

The  European  content  industry  is  faced  with  a  number  of  obstacles  to  growth  that 
prevent it from quickly realising the critical mass necessary  to  compete  on equal terms 
in the newly emerging multimedia markets. 

These obstacles need to be addressed by actions both at national  and European level if 
Europe is to  expand its content industries, to  exploit its richness of content  and to  face 
international  competition.  It  are these remaining barriers that will be addressed  by the 
proposed  action lines as indicated below. 

Stimulating  demand and raising awareness 

The  variety  of  Europe's  cultural  and  linguistic  traditions  makes  economies  of  scope 
and  scale  (economies  made  through  being  able to  address  a  large  single  market  with 

°\ 

customised  products)  difficult  to  achieve  and  constrain  product  development.  In 
addition, many surveys point to a limited awareness of content  available to users  across 
Europe.  The  aim  here  is  to  create  new  markets  and  to  encourage  clusters  of  pan-
European users. 

initiatives  (action  1.1)  are  needed 

Awareness-raising 
the 
opportunities,  as  are  actions to  favour  the  development  of  pan-European  user  groups 
(action  1.2).  In  addition,  a  common  approach  to  information  service  interoperability 
(action 4.2) will help to open up market potential. 

to  develop  further 

Exploiting  Europe's public  sector  information 

The public sector holds a dominant position in some segments of the European  content 
market. 

The  actions  proposed  involve  unleashing  the  economic  and  cultural  potential  of 
Europe's public sector information  by developing relevant EU  policies  (action  2.1), by 
linking  directories  of European  public  sector  information  (action  2.2)  and  by  making 
use of content resources in the public sector (action 2.3). 

Triggering European  multimedia  potential 

The provision of attractive European  multimedia  content  is still in its infancy.  For  this 
market to  take  off  the  content  must  be  attractive  to  the user,  i.e.  easy to  access,  well 
presented  and  with  adequate  transaction  and  payment  mechanisms.  Solutions  for 
electronic  advertising,  electronic  markets  and  digital  revenue  collection  mechanisms 
need to be identified,  evaluated and encouraged  at the European level. 

Three  areas  of  specific  importance  to  Europe  to  stimulate  the  development  of 
attractive  multimedia  content  are  the  exploitation  of  Europe's  cultural  heritage, 
business  services  for  SMEs,  and  geographic  information  (action  3.1).  Also  actions 
aimed  at making use of  content resources in the public sector  (action 2.3) will  further 
contribute to providing an attractive pan-European multimedia content package. 

Encouraging  small  multimedia  producers 

Although  large  enterprises  play  an  important  role  in  the  content  industries,  the  great 
majority  of actors are small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). 

Most  of  the  actions  foreseen  seek  to  encourage  SMEs  to  overcome  some  of  the 
problems  of  the  emerging  multimedia  market.  However,  the  actions  aiming  at 
catalysing  high  quality  European  multimedia  content  (action  3.1)  and  at  facilitating 
trading in multimedia rights (action 3.2) are particularly relevant. 

Initiating  European  multimedia  trading systems 

The licensing  and re-use of content  is constrained  by a lack  of uniformity  of  approach 
between  media  types,  in  different  regions  and  in  different  markets.  New  digital 

10 

technology is only slowly being deployed to expand information trading markets. 

Action  is needed  to  ensure  that  multimedia  trading  systems  can work  across  national 
and sectoral borders and to encourage intellectual property owners to trade multimedia 
rights.  The  actions  foreseen  aim  at  favouring  a  practical  approach  to  this  trading  of 
multimedia intellectual property rights (action 3.2). 

Promoting  new business practices 

The  newly  emerging  multimedia  markets  are  often  transnational  in nature  and  require 
new business approaches cutting across what used to be distinct business sectors. 

New  alliances  and  multidisciplinary  teams  will  be  increasingly  required.  For  many 
actors  in the  content  industry  this means that  new  forms  of  creativity  will  have  to  be 
explored, new skills acquired, and new ways of conducting business implemented. 

The  changes  and  adjustments  need  to  take  place  rapidly  and  be  supported  by 
developing  and  exchanging  best  business  practice  to  encourage  entrepreneurship 
(action 3.3) and by encouraging skills development (action 4.3). 

3.3. 

PARTICIPANTS 

Participants  will be  drawn  from  both  users  and  suppliers  in  primarily  content-related 
activities in the information value chain. They will include those involved in: 

source material creation of images, text, graphics, music, sound 

content development for  databases, electronic book titles,  CD-ROM/CD-I 
titles, game titles, and interactive TV programmes 

content packaging, producing information  services such as on-line databases, 
videotex-, audiotex- and fax-based  services, books, newspapers, magazines, 
interactive TV services, electronic books, CD-ROM/CD-I information  and 
infotainment  products, etc. 

content distribution, exploiting delivery channels such as optical and magnetic 
media, cable, satellite, and telephone networks, mobile networks, and paper 

end-users such as large and small businesses, public sector administrations, 
professionals,  researchers, the education and training sector,  consumers 
and citizens. Particular attention will also be given to those  end-users 
who will see their roles evolving into suppliers of information  services, 
as part of the move towards electronic markets and communities. 

Those  involved  in  end-user  equipment,  communications  software  and  hardware  and 
production tools will be invited  to  participate  on the basis of the  specific  contributions 
that they can make to the programme. 

V 

Although large corporations will be important players in the global information  market, 
they  are  not  the  main  target  for  the  programme  actions.  The  emerging  multimedia 
market potentially creates a broad range of opportunities for  small and new enterprises. 
It is particularly this population and its inherent growth potential, in terms of both jobs 
and revenue, that INFO2000 is targeting. 

Distinctions  between  roles  in  the  content  industry  are,  however,  blurring.  An 
increasingly wide range  of  actors  from  an  ever  broader  group  of  sectors  is  becoming 
involved  in exchanging  and  trading  content  over  electronic  networks.  It  is  important 
that  this  whole  range  of  experience  be  included  in  the  programme  if  obstacles  to 
growth are to be properly identified  and appropriate action taken. 

3.4. 

SELECTION OF PROJECTS 

The main vehicle for  the  implementation  of the INFO2000  programme  will  consist  of 
Calls for Proposals as described in Annex III to the Council Decision. 

4. 

CONCLUDING REMARKS 

The role of the private  sector 
its 
constituent  elements  (networks,  basic  services,  applications,  content)  is  first  and 
foremost  the  responsibility  of  the  private  sector.  Its  role  is  crucial  because  its 
protagonists are accustomed to risk-taking, have extensive experience in exploring and 
developing new markets and are a valuable source of capital. 

society  and 

information 

Building 

the 

The role of the public  sector 
Nevertheless, the public sector role is essential in 
supporting the emergence of the information  society at global,  European,  national  and 
regional levels. Firstly, by developing a vision that responds to the many social,  societal 
and  cultural  challenges.  Secondly,  by  creating  the  appropriate  regulatory  conditions 
through the liberalisation of telecommunications networks and  services and  a clear and 
stable regulatory  framework,  particularly  in relation to  intellectual  property  rights  and 
privacy  protection.  And thirdly by  catalysing  the  changes  needed  to  adapt  to  the  new 
situation. 

The  actions  proposed  above  aim  at  encouraging  the  transformation  from  print  to 
electronic  publishing  in  Europe  and  at  stimulating  the  emergence  of  interactive 
multimedia information  services. 

The programme is based  on extensive consultations with market  actors,  including user 
groups,  and with representatives  of the Member  States. It  seeks to  ensure the  greatest 
possible involvement of all relevant actors in the information value chain. 

During  the  programme,  the  development  of the European  multimedia  content  market 
will  be  regularly  monitored.  Particular  attention  will  be  given  to  the  competitive 
position of the multimedia  content  industry  and its  contribution  to  employment,  social 
development and cultural diversity. 

iz 

# 
1 

1.1 

TITLE 
Stimulating  demand 
and  raising  awareness 

Creating new markets by 
raising awareness at the 
European level with 
specific user groups 

ANNEX  1: SUMMARY OF INFO2000 ACTIONS 

DESCRIPTION 

JUSTIFICATION 

Call  for  proposals  for  participating 
organisations (30-50) to: 
- Facilitate access to European wide 
repositories and catalogues 
- Demonstrate access to the European 
information highways 
- Support awareness campaigns and 
user training 

Awareness  and  promotion  are  an  important  dimension  of  information 
society policy actions. Activities will: 
-  Add a European dimension to national/regional activities 
-  Support know-how/experience exchange 
- Facilitate co-operation in joint projects to achieve economies of scale and 
European-wide coverage 
- Build on previous experience and co-operation with other networks 

1.2 

Encouraging clusters of 
pan-European users 

-  Studies to analyse current situation 
-  Start-up  incentives  for  creation  and 
functioning  of  clusters  of  pan-
European users 
-  Stimuli 
exchange of experience 

for  co-operation  and 

-  Lack of a well-articulated  and organised demand-side at European level 
because of dispersion of users 
-  Common  European  user  problems  for  instance  in  relation  to  quality 
assurance or liability questions need addressing 
- European user groups are lacking in the multimedia content sector 

^ 

# 

2 

2.1 

DESCRIPTION 

JUSTIFICATION 

TITLE 
Exploiting Europe's 
public sector 
information 

Developing policies to access 
and exploit European public 
sector  information 

-  Studies  to  prepare  a  Green  paper  on  access 
policies 

2.2 

Linking directories of 
European public  sector 
information 

regional 

Call for proposals  for: 
-  Pilot  projects  that  interconnect  existing  national 
and 
sector 
information 
- Pilot projects  for  collaborative  production  of new 
directories of public sector  information 

of  public 

directories 

-  Co-ordination  of  access  conditions  for 
businesses across the Union 
- Co-ordination of conditions for re-use of content for businesses 
across the Union 
-  Provision  of  equal  opportunities  for  all  individuals  and 
businesses to access public sector information in the EU 

individuals  and 

-  Demonstration  of practical  solutions  to  make  European public 
sector information  easily accessible to users in the EU 
- Co-ordination and EU-wide  co-operation 

2.3 

Making use of content 
resources in the public 
sector (particularly  in the 
cultural  area) 

Call for proposals  for: 
- pilot projects  for  the networking of inventories to 
exploit  the  digital  content  resources  in  the  public 
sector 
-  pilot  projects  that  integrate  digital  inventories 
with intellectual property trading  systems 

-  Strengthening  the  European  content  sector by providing  easier 
access  to  and  transparency  of  content  resources  across  Member 
States 
-  Strengthening Europe's cultural  identity 
-  Stimulating  co-operation  and  experience  exchange at  European 
level 

^ 

# 

3 

3.1 

TITLE 
Triggering European 
multimedia potential 

Catalysing high quality 
European multimedia 
content 

3.2 

Trading multimedia 
intellectual property rights 

DESCRIPTION 

JUSTIFICATION 

Call for proposals to support the initial and 
precommercial phases of pan-European 
multimedia content development in the domains 
of: 
- European cultural heritage 
- Business services for SMEs 
- Geographic Information 

- Call for proposals  to support  pilot projects 
that lay the foundations for  trading multimedia 
rights across sectors (text, sound, images) and 
across borders electronically 
- Studies to determine how different  existing 
trading systems for intellectual property rights 
can work together 
- Development of practical tools that help SMEs 
in trading EPRs 

- Multimedia content developers (mainly SMEs and new companies) 
have difficulty in exploiting the single market 
- Partner finding, acquisition of rights, multilinguicity, multicultural 
aspects,  etc. are particularly problematic 

- Management of rights presently dispersed by sector and by country 
- A new approach is necessary for multimedia trading on a pan-European 
scale 
- Critical mass is a vital element in creating a true European multimedia 
market 

3.3 

Developing and exchanging 
best business practice 

- Support to descriptions of best business 
practice, e.g. studies, manuals 
- Support to diffusion  of best business practice, 
e.g. workshops, seminars 

- Normal business rules of sectors in the content industry do not apply to 
multimedia 
- Common development of best practice and experience  exchange 
stimulate development of multimedia content industry 

^ 

TITLE 
Support actions 

Observing and 
analysing the 
multimedia content 
market 

DESCRIPTION 

JUSTIFICATION 

Support to: 
- scenario development 
- quality assurance actions 
- market monitoring 
- strategic studies in specific areas 
- concertation meetings with relevant players 
(suppliers, users, administrations) to identify key 
issues affecting the multimedia content industry 

- Multimedia content industry largely composed of SMEs 
- Global and international markets rapidly changing 
- SMEs lack resources for such critical activities 
- Programme actions need to remain rooted in reality 

Spreading  the  use  of 
multimedia 
content 
standards 

-  Support  to  actions  that  raise  awareness  of 
multimedia content standards 
-  Support  will  be  given  to  consensus  building 
(workshops, etc.) 

- Lack of interoperability and standardisation are obstacles to 
development of the multimedia content market 

Encouraging 
skills development 
at European level 

-  Support  to  develop  pilot  courses  for  multimedia 
developers 
- Full implementation in Community education and 
training 
and 
SOCRATES) 

(LEONARDO 

programmes 

-  Adequate  skills a key element  for  high  quality  multimedia 
titles 
-  Interdisciplinary  approach  necessary  (text,  sound,  video, 
stills, animation) 
- European dimension (mutilinguicity, multicultural) needs to 
be incorporated at the design stage 

# 
4 

4.1 

4.2 

4.3 

^ 

ANNEX 2: List of Acronyms/Abbreviations 

ACTS 

BECU 
CD 
CD-I 
CD-ROM 
G7 
ICT 
IMPACT 
IT 

RTD in the field of Advanced Communication Technologies and 
Services 
Billion ECU 
Compact Disk 
Compact Disk Interactive 
Compact Disk Read Only Memory 
Group of Seven Most Industrialised Nations 
Information and Communication Technology 
Information Market Policy Actions 
Technological Development in the field of Information 
Technologies 
LEONARDO  Vocational training programme 
Million ECU 
MECU 
Audiovisual Policy: Stimulating dynamic growth in the European 
MEDIA II 
programme industry 
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 
Personal Computer 
Community action programme in the field of cultural heritage 
Research and Technological Development 
Small or Medium Sized Enterprise 
Community education programme 

OECD 
PC 
RAPHAEL 
RTD 
SME 
SOCRATES 
TELEMATICS  RTD in the field of Telematics Applications 
WIPO 
WTO 

World Intellectual Property Organisation 
World Trade Organisation 

(r 

Proposal for a 
COUNCIL DECISION 

adopting a multi-annual Community programme 
to stimulate the development of a European multimedia content industry 
and to encourage the use of multimedia content in the emerging information society 
(INFO2000) 

(presented by the Commission) 

I? 

Proposal 
for  a  Council  Decision  adopting  a  multi-annual  Community 
programme  to  stimulate  the  development  of  a  European  multimedia  content 
industry  and  to  encourage  the  use  of  multimedia  content  in  the  emerging 
information  society (INFO2000) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

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

Article  130 paragraph 3 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission 

, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament 

, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee 

, 

Whereas  the  European  content  industry  can  make  a  significant  contribution  to  the 
stimulation of growth, to the  strengthening  of competitiveness  and to  the  development 
of  employment  in  the  Community,  as  indicated  in  the  White  Paper  on  "Growth, 
competitiveness,  employment  -  The  challenges  and  ways  forward  into  the  21st 
century" 

, 

Whereas the European  Council  at Brussels  on  10-11 December  1993  decided,  on the 

basis of that White Paper, to implement an action plan, consisting of concrete  measures 

at  both  Union  and  Member  States  level,  notably  with  respect  to 

information 

infrastructures  and new applications, for which new content is required; 

Whereas  the  European  Council  at  Corfu  on  24-25  June  1994  took  note  of  the 
Recommendations  of the High Level Group  on the information  society  as presented  in 

the  report  "Europe  and  the  global  information  society" 

;  and  underlined  that  the 

Community  and  Member  States  have  an important  role  to  play  in  bringing  about  the 

information  society  by  giving  political  impetus,  by  creating  a  clear  and  stable 

regulatory  and  legal framework and  by setting  an example in areas which  come  under 

OJN°. 
OJN°. 
OJN°. 
'Growth, competitiveness, employment - The challenges and ways forward  into the 21st century1 
COM(93)700 final of 5.12.1993, Chapter 5A "The information society'. 
'Europe and the global information society - Recommendations to the European Council', Brussels, 
26 May 1994. 

tf 

their aegis; 

Whereas the Commission's action plan " Europe's Way to the Information  Society  - An 

Action  Plan" 

recognises  the  importance  of  content  and  stipulates  that  the 

Commission  will propose  ways  to  stimulate  the  creation  of  favourable  conditions  for 

content providers to adapt their skills and products to the new multimedia  environment 

and to stimulate increased usage of new information  services; 

Whereas the Council on 28 September  1994 

underlined the particular urgency  of the 

need  to  enhance  the  global  competitiveness  of the European  content  industry,  taking 

account of the cultural diversity and of the impact of these products on society; 

Whereas  the  European  Council  at  Essen  on  9-10  December  1994  underlined  the 

importance of content in bringing about the information  society; 

Whereas  the  Council  Resolution  on  Culture  and  Multimedia  8  on  3-4  April  1995 
underlined the importance of multimedia for facilitating  the development  of the content 
industry  and improving  access of citizens to  cultural heritage,  as well  as the  catalysing 
role  of Member  States  and  the  Union  in  the  creation,  production  and  distribution  of 
high quality cultural multimedia programmes; 

Whereas the three long-term  strategic  objectives  of the Union's  content  policy  shall be 

to  facilitate  the  development  of  the  European  content  industry;  to  optimise  the 

contribution  of new information  services to  growth,  competitiveness  and  employment 

in Europe;  and  to  maximise  the  contribution  of  advanced  information  services  to. the 

professional,  social and cultural development of the citizens of Europe; 

Whereas  there  are  numerous  barriers  to  the  development  of  a  European  multimedia 
content industry and market, which are hindering the transition towards an  information 
society; 

Whereas  the  Community  needs  to  build  on  the  strong  competitive  position  it  has  in 
some content  sectors  and whereas its competitive  position  needs to  be strengthened  in 
other content  sectors; 

6  COM(94)347 final of 19 July 1994 ' Europe's Way to the Information Society - An Action Plan'. 
7  Conclusions of the 1787th Council meeting 9561/94 (Press 197), 28 September 1994. 
8  Audiovisual/Culture Council session nr  1841 of 3-4 April  1995, Council document 6072/95 of 24 

March 1995 

20 

Whereas the needs of users  of information  services, particularly  in small  and  medium-
sized  enterprises  and  in  the  less  favoured  regions  of  the  Community,  merit  special 
attention; 

Whereas  provision  should  be  made  for  measures  to  encourage  the  participation  of 

small and medium-sized  enterprises (SMEs) in this programme; 

Whereas  the  different  rates  of  development  in  the  provision  and  use  of  information 
services  in  the  Member  States  deserve  special  consideration,  having  regard  to  the 
internal  cohesion  of  the  Community  and  the  risks  associated  with  a  two-tier 
information  society; 

Whereas  policy  actions under  this  programme  aiming  at  strengthening  the  position  of 

the  European  content  industry  will  be  complementary  to  other  content  actions, 

particularly those related to the audiovisual sector 

, 

Whereas any content policy actions  must be complementary  to  other  ongoing  national 

and  Community  initiatives,  as  outlined  notably  in  the  Commission's  action  plan 

"Europe's Way to the Information  Society - An Action Plan", and shall be performed  in 
,  training  1 1,  RTD  12  and  SME  ^ 

synergy  with  the  Commission's  education 

policies and initiatives; 

Whereas  progress  of  this  programme  should  be  continuously  and  systematically 

monitored  with  a  view  to  adapting  it,  where  appropriate,  to  developments  in  the 

multimedia  content  market;  whereas  in  due  course  there  should  be  an  independent 

evaluation  of  the  progress  of  the  programme  so  as  to  provide  the  background 

information  needed  in order to  determine the objectives  for  subsequent  content  policy 

actions;  whereas  at  the  end  of  this  programme  there  shall  be  a  final  evaluation  of 

results obtained compared with the objectives  set out in this Decision; 

Council Decision 93/424/EEC of 22 July  1993 on an action plan for the introduction of advanced 
television services in Europe; COM(94)523 of 8 February  1995  *Politique Audio-visuelle.  Créer 
un  environnement  favorable  à l'essor  des  entreprises  de l'industrie  européenne  des programmes 
(MEDIA2  1996-2000)';  Council  Directive  89/552/EEC  of  3  October  1989  'Television  without 
frontiers' (OJN° L 298, 17.10.1989, p. 15). 

10  COM(93) 708 final of  3 February 1994. 
11  Council Decision of 6 December 1994 (OJ N° L 340, 29.12.1994, p.8). 

Fourth Framework Programme of the European Community activities in the field  of research and 
technological  development  and  demonstration  (1994  to  1998),  adopted  by  the  Decision  N° 
1110/94/EC of the European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  26  April  1994  (OJ  N°  L  126, 
18.5.1994, p.l). 

13  COM(94) 207 final of 3 June 1994 

% 

Whereas  the  actions  in this  programme  will not  in any way  prejudice  the  competition 
rules of the Community; 

Whereas  it  may be  appropriate  to  engage  in international  co-operation  activities  with 

international  organisations  and  third  countries  for  the  purpose  of  implementing  this 

programme; 

Whereas it is necessary to fix the duration of the programme; 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION : 

Article 1 

A programme is hereby adopted with the following  objectives: 

•  Stimulate  demand for,  and use of,  multimedia content, 

•  Create favourable  conditions for the development of the European multimedia 

content industry, 

•  Contribute to the professional,  social and cultural development  of the citizens of 

Europe. 

Article 2 
« 

In  order to  attain the  objectives  referred  to  in Article  1, the following  actions  shall be 
undertaken under the guidance of the Commission,  in accordance with the  action  lines 
in Annex I and the detailed implementation arrangements set out in Annex III: 

• 
• 
• 
• 

stimulating demand and raising awareness, 
exploiting Europe's public sector  information, 
triggering European multimedia potential, 
support actions. 

Article 3 

The  programme  shall  cover  a  period  of  four  years  from  1  January  1996  to  31 
December  1999. 

<& 

Article 4 

1.  The Commission shall be responsible for the implementation of the programme. 

2.  The procedure laid down in Article 5 shall apply to: 

the work programme, 

the breakdown of the budgetary expenditure, 

the content of calls for proposals, 

the measures  for programme evaluation, 

any departure from the rules set out in Annex III, 

participation in any project  by legal entities from third countries and 

international organisations. 

Article 5 

1.  The  Commission  shall be  assisted  by  a committee  of an  advisory  nature  composed 
of the representatives  of the Member  States and chaired by the representative  of the 
Commission. 

2.  The Commission representative shall submit to the committee a draft  of measures to 

be  taken.  The  committee  shall  deliver  its  opinion  on  the  draft  within  a  time  limit 

which  the  chairman  may  lay  down  according  to  the  urgency  of  the  matter 

concerned, if necessary by taking a vote. 

3.  The opinion shall be recorded in the minutes; in addition, each Member State shall 

have the right to ask to have its position recorded  in the minutes. 

4.  The  Commission  shall  take  the  utmost  account  of  the  opinion  delivered  by  the 
committee.  It  shall  inform  the  committee  of  the  manner  in  which  its  opinion  has 
been taken into account. 

Article 6 

At the mid-term and  at the end  of the programme, the Commission  shall submit to  the 
European  Parliament,  the  Council,  the  Economic  and  Social  Committee  and  the 
Committee of the Regions, once the committee referred  to in Article 5 has examined  it, 

P 

an  evaluation  report  drawn  up  by  independent  experts  on  the  results  obtained  in 
implementing the action Unes referred  to in Article 2. The Commission may present,  on 
the basis of those results, proposals for adjusting the orientation of the programme. 

Article 7 

Participation in this programme may be open, normally without financial  support by the 
Community,  to  legal  entities  established  in  third  countries  and  to  international 
organisations, where such participation contributes effectively  to the implementation  of 
the programme and taking into account the principle of mutual  benefit. 

Article 8 

This Decision is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 

The President 

M 

ANNEXI 

ACTION LINES FOR INFO2000 

ACTION LINE  1:  Stimulating  demand and raising  awareness 

Lack  of  awareness  of  the  potential  of  the  new  multimedia  information  products  and 
services  is  an  important  factor  constraining  demand.  This  action  line  contributes  to 
redressing that situation by adding a European dimension to  awareness and  user-group 
activities taking place at the national  or  regional level.  Specific  attention will be  given 
to  favouring  demand  development  in  less-favoured  and  peripheral  regions  of  the 
Union. 

1.1. 

Creating  new  markets  by  raising  awareness  at  the  European  level  with 
specific  user groups 

Under the IMPACT programme  a network  of organisations  in the Member  States has 
been  created  that  have  a  responsibility  for  conducting  awareness  and  information 
campaigns in relation to new information  services. In different  Member  States this role 
is  performed  by  different  organisations  like  chambers  of  commerce,  professional 
organisations  or public bodies. By working in a European network these  organisations 
are able to add a European dimension to their activities. 

Under  INFO2000  this  successful  formula  will  be  continued  and  extended.  The 
involvement  of  the  Community  in the  network  as  a  catalyst  and  a  co-ordinator  adds 
value to  the  individual  activities  and  puts these  activities  in  a  clear European  context. 
Apart  from  financial  support  for  specific  activities  with  a  European  dimension  the 
Commission  will  encourage  the  exchange  of  know-how  and  experience,  the  use  of 
common  communication  and  information  facilities,  and  co-operation  between  the 
various organisations in joint  projects. 

The organisations in the network will perform the following  tasks: 

• 

• 
• 

• 

• 

provide access to information  collections and catalogues across the European 
Union; 
demonstrate and facilitate  access to the European information  highways; 
advise users on the possible sources for satisfying their multimedia  content 
needs, both nationally and internationally; 
organise co-ordinated European awareness campaigns at the national or 
regional level; 
stimulate the training of users. 

The main target groups for the  actions will be  small and  medium-sized  companies  and 
libraries. The  actual  selection  of  specific  target  groups  will be  left  to  the  national  and 

<?r 

regional organisations concerned,  since they are closest to the target groups. 

Following  a  call  for  proposals  a  total  of  30  to  50  organisations  will  be  selected  to 
participate  in  the  network.  Selection  criteria  will  include  knowledge  of  the  local 
information  market,  affinity  with the target groups foreseen  and readiness to work  in a 
European  network.  Actions  which  aim  to  stimulate  women's  interests  in  new 
information  services are encouraged. 

The  network  will  co-operate  with  other  relevant  national  organisations.  It  will  liaise 
closely  with  other  EU  supported  bodies  and  networks  that  have  a  complementary 
mission,  such  as  the  Information  Society  Project  Office  (ISPO),  the  European 
Information  Centres  (EICs),  the  Business  Co-operation  Network  (BC-NET),  the 
Value  Relay  Centres  and  the  University  Enterprise  Training  Partnerships  (UETPs). 
Organisations from these networks  could  be  selected  in the  call for  proposals.  Efforts 
will be made to  avoid  parallel  or  overlapping  networks.  Synergy  and  spin-offs  will be 
sought  with  other  awareness  activities  performed  under  the  4th  Framework  research 
programme  such  as  the  Advanced  Communication  Technologies  and  Services  and 
Telematics applications programmes. 

1.2.  Encouraging  clusters of pan-European  users 

A  flourishing  demand  side  is  important  for  the  development  of  a  healthy  market  for 
advanced  information  products  and  services  such  as  multimedia.  In  view  of  the  rapid 
changes taking place in the information  market,  regular dialogue between suppliers and 
users  can  smooth the transition  process.  In general  the  supply  side tends  to  be  better 
organised  than the user  side, both at the national  and  at the European level. In two  of 
the  three  sectors  that  compose  the  multimedia  industry  -  information  technology  and 
telecommunications  - the user  side is increasingly  organising  itself both  at the  national 
and at the European level. 

In the third  sector  of the multimedia  industry  - the  content  industry  - the  demand  side 
is  much  less  organised  and  is  fragmented.  Historically,  the  relationship  between  the 
content  providers  and  the  users  has  been  indirect,  i.e.  through  intermediaries. 
However,  under  the  influence  of  the  new  communication  networks  this  situation  is 
changing.  The  need  to  develop  direct  relations  between  suppliers  and  users  is 
increasingly  being  felt  in  the  content  sector  also.  At  the  national  level,  professional 
organisations  and  industry  sector  organisations  are  beginning  to  address  the  issue. 
However,  for  a successful  development  of the European  multimedia  content  market  it 
is important that groupings of users also emerge at the European level. 

The  actions  foreseen  under  INFO2000  aim  to  stimulate  this  process  by  providing 
incentives for  co-operation  and  exchange  of experience  between  national user  groups, 
thereby  encouraging  the  emergence  of European  groupings.  Specific  measures  will be 
tailored  to  address  key user  problems,  for  example  quality  assurance  and  questions  of 
liability.  The network  of awareness  organisations  will be used  to  analyse the  situation 
in  individual  Member  States  and  will  play  a  catalytic  role  in  bringing  about  pan-
European user groups. 

<?G 

ACTION LINE  2:  Exploiting Europe's public  sector  information 

Europe's  public  sector  information  is  a  hidden  resource  to  be  exploited.  The  public 
sector collects and produces vast  amounts of information,  much of which is of interest 
to  individuals  and  businesses,  and  which  can  be  the  raw  material  for  value-added 
information  services produced by the private sector content industry.  Official  statistical 
services either at regional, national or European level are an example. 

Three  sets  of  actions  will  be  particularly  helpful  in  supporting  this  public  sector  role 
and in exploiting its potential at European level: 

• 
• 
• 

developing policies to access and exploit public sector  information, 
linking directories of European public sector  information, 
making use of content resources in the public sector. 

Particular attention will be given to improving access from the peripheral regions of the 
Union. 

2.1.  Developing  policies 
information 

to  access  and  exploit  European  public 

sector 

In the Member  States,  rules for  access to  public  sector  information  are very  different 
or  in  some  cases  do  not  exist  at  all.  As  the  transition  to  the  information  society 
progresses, this situation could become a barrier to full  participation by individuals and 
businesses  across  Europe  and  may  become  the  cause  of  unevenly  distributed 
opportunities. Therefore,  initiatives  need  to be taken  at the European  level to  develop 
policies which facilitate  access to  and exploitation of public  sector held information,  in 
particular as regards information  resources of European  interest. 

The  Commission will produce,  in close  collaboration  with  Member  States  and  market 
actors,  a  Green  Paper  analysing  the  situation  in  the  different  Member  States,  the 
relative  position  of  the  EU  in  a  global  context  and  the  various  possibilities  for 
convergence  of  national  approaches.  To  lay  the  foundations  for  this  Green  Paper, 
studies  comparing  national  situations  will  be  undertaken  and  exchanges  of  national 
experience will be encouraged. 

2.2.  Linking  directories of European public  sector  information 

In a number of Member  States practical initiatives are being taken to improve access to 
public sector information.  In the European information  society  it must be ensured  that 
the relevant  public  sector information  becomes more  easily  accessible  to  all European 
individuals and businesses that may have an interest in such  information. 

The  Commission  will  support  initiatives  to  produce  directories  of  European  public 
sector  information  to  a  common  format,  so  that  they  can  be  interlinked  and  easily 
accessed from any point in Europe. 

Following  a  call  for  proposals,  pilot  projects  for  the  production  of  information 
directories  that  incorporate  the  above  characteristics  will  be  supported.  These  pilot 

projects  may address the transnational  interconnection  of  existing  national  or  regional 
information  directories as well as the collaborative production of new  directories. Pilot 
projects based on public/private partnerships and applying multilingual solutions will be 
particularly  encouraged. 

2.3.  Making  use of content resources in the public  sector 

Europe  is blessed  with  a rich stock  of what  might  be  called  "information  collections" 
under  public  sector  control,  for  instance  in  museums,  libraries,  copyright  and  patent 
deposit  systems,  educational  and  training  bodies,  historical  archives  and  architectural 
and industrial  objects.  These information  collections  need  to  be  exploited  if Europe  is 
to build on these cultural and economic  assets commercially  and  if Europe  is to  realise 
the  potential  of  advanced  technologies  in  support  of  public  sector  services.  They  are 
central to  the Union's  strength  in the  global  information  society  and  their  commercial 
and  strategic  potential  has  already  been  underlined  by  a  series  of  deals  transferring 
control over some of them to private companies, not all of which have been European. 

Most  of  these  information  collections  are  still  in  analogue  form  but  they  are 
increasingly being digitised. The INFO2000 programme aims at mobilising these digital 
collections for exploitation by the private sector. 

To  this  end  the  Commission  will  support  the  creation  of  European  inventories  of 
digital information  collections and  stimulate their  interconnection  across  the EU.  This 
involves defining  a common standard format  for  such inventories  as well as integrating 
them  with  intellectual  property  rights  trading  systems.  Support  for  the  creation  of 
inventories and their integration with intellectual property rights trading systems will be 
provided  on the basis  of  calls for  proposals.  Related  standards  and  specifications  will 
be  developed  through  studies  and  through  task  groups  composed  of  the  actors 
involved. 

ACTION LINE 3: 

Triggering European  multimedia  potential 

The  transition  from  "scribe  to  screen"  is  rapidly  and  fundamentally  changing  the 
structure  of  the  content  industry  and  the  roles  of  the  different  players  within  it. 
Internationalisation  and  multimedia  are  key  words  in  this  respect.  Content  itself  and 
new  ways  of  creating,  packaging,  distributing  and  marketing  it  are  increasingly 
becoming the key drivers behind these changes. 

Coping with these changes and exploiting the opportunities that emerge is primarily the 
responsibility  of  the  industries  concerned.  However,  apart  from  a  limited  number  of 
large  corporations  that  operate  on  a  global  scale,  the  present  day  content  sector  in 
Europe  is mainly made up  of small and medium size companies.  These have  difficulty 
in  dealing  with  a  rapidly  developing  international  multimedia  market  and  the  speed 
with which the changes take place. In addition the initial cost  of producing high quality 
multimedia  titles  is  high  and  the  European  market  fragmented  through  cultural  and 
linguistic  barriers.  The  critical  mass  needed  to  recoup  initial  investments  is  therefore 
much more difficult  to reach. 

M 

This puts European multimedia publishers, traditionally used  to  operating  in a national 
or regional setting, at a disadvantage compared with their competitors from other  parts 
of  the  world.  Exploitation  of the  single  market  potential  will  become  vital  for  global 
competitiveness. 

This  action  Une  aims  at  mitigating  these  comparative  disadvantages  for  European 
producers in the emerging multimedia market by: 

catalysing high quality European multimedia content 
favouring  a practical approach to trading multimedia rights 
developing and exchanging best business practice 

• 

3.1 

Catalysing high quality European  multimedia  content 

The production of high quality European multimedia content will be stimulated  in three 
strategic  areas:  economic  exploitation  of Europe's  cultural  heritage,  business  services 
for  SMEs,  and  geographic  information.  Under  the IMPACT  programme  pilot  actions 
in these  areas  have illustrated  the  problems  connected  with  a pan-European  approach 
and have laid the foundations  for further  actions under INFO2000. 

Multilingual  interactive  multimedia  products  can  build  on  the  wealth  of  available 
European content, while overcoming language barriers and other limitations of national 
and  regional  markets.  Apart  from  the  economic  benefits,  strong  European  business 
activity  in this  area  is Ukely to  contribute  to  the  safeguarding  of  cultural  identity  and 
linguistic diversity. It will also increase the pubUc's understanding  of European  cultural 
diversity across the Member States and regions. 

In the  areas indicated  above  - European  cultural  heritage,  business  services  for  SMEs 
and geographic information  - calls for proposals will be launched to provide  support  to 
initial  and  pre-commercial  phases  of  pan-European  multimedia  content 
the 
developments.  The  support  given  should  help the  companies  concerned  overcome  the 
specific barriers with respect to multilingual and multicultural  (re)use of content  and to 
trans-national  co-operation.  These  initial  phases  would  include  product  definition, 
partner  identification,  cross-licensing  negotiation,  planning  of co-operative  distribution 
etc. up to and including the production of a prototype. 

Support  will be  given to  projects  that  demonstrate  the  feasibility  of  a  trans-European 
multilingual and multicultural  approach,  contain a risk element,  exert  a strong  catalytic 
effect  on the market  and  imply substantial user involvement.  Special  add-on  incentives 
can be provided  to  encourage  participation  by small and  medium  sized  companies  and 
organisations from less favoured  and peripheral regions. 

The calls for  proposals  will be  co-ordinated  closely with the  Community  programmes 
RAPHAEL  and  the Integrated Programme  in favour  of SMEs and the craft  sector,  as 
well  as  with  the  sectoral  policy  actions  in  the  areas  of  Trade,  Tourism  and  Social 
Economics. 

tf 

3.2. 

Trading multimedia  intellectual property  rights 

Historically, the management of rights is organised by sector (text,  sound, image, video 
etc.)  and  by  country.  With  the  dawning  of  the  multimedia  age  this  situation  is 
increasingly becoming  a barrier to  the  development  of multimedia  content  markets,  as 
the time and effort  that has to be spent on identifying  and acquiring the different  rights 
increases  steeply with the number  of data  types  involved  and the number  of  countries 
where right holders are located.  Small companies and new media start-ups  suffer  most 
from the present system as they may wish to re-use existing material. 

The  development  of  pan-European  multimedia  content  often  requires  input  from 
various  Member  States.  Effective  and  efficient  mechanisms  for  trading  multimedia 
rights  at  the  European  level  are  therefore  essential  for  the  development  of  the 
European multimedia content industry. 

A  call for  proposals  wiU be launched  inviting  proposals  for  pilot  projects  that  lay  the 
foundations  for  cross-border  trading  of  multimedia  rights  electronically.  In  addition, 
studies will be launched  to  determine how  different  intellectual  property  rights  trading 
systems for  multimedia  in Europe  can work  together.  As  an aid to  small  and  medium 
sized  companies practical tools will be  developed  on best  practices to  acquire,  exploit 
and  protect  multimedia  rights.  The  actions  will  build  on  the  relevant  research  and 
technological development activities under the Fourth Framework Programme. 

Although  the  difficulty  of  reaching  consensus  should  not  be  underestimated,  in  the 
longer term, harmonisation and rationalisation of legal requirements may be necessary. 

3.3.  Developing  and exchanging best practice 

Actions will be supported that aim at developing and exchanging best business  practice 
in  the  multimedia  content  industry  at  the  European  level.  Such  actions  will  include 
descriptions of business processes and models relevant to the content industry,  such as 
procedures  for  intellectual  property  acquisition  and  content  asset  valuation  and 
management,  and  exchange  of  experiences  with  multimedia  consumer  panels  to  test 
and evaluate multimedia products and services. 

These activities will be implemented by means of a combination of studies, workshops, 
seminars and publications. The relevant organisations in the European content  industry 
will be closely involved. 

4. 

Support  actions 

The programme support  actions aim at amplifying  the effects  of the core actions of the 
programme by addressing a number of horizontal issues relevant  for  the programme  as 
a whole. 

3d 

4.1.  Observing and analysing the multimedia content  market 

At  regular  intervals  senior  experts  from  the  content  industry,  from  user  communities 
and from Member  States will be convened to  monitor,  analyse  and  discuss  the  impact 
of  multimedia  on  the  content  industry  and  on  the  different  actors  in  the  information 
value  chain.  When  organising  these  meetings  modern  multimedia  information  and 
communication facihties will be used where possible. 

The composition  of the meetings will reflect  the various  segments  of content  creation, 
distribution and use within the European Union, as well as the many regulatory  aspects 
(e.g. personal data protection)  affecting  the content  dimension.  They will thus  serve as 
a  focus  for  discussion,  exchange  of  experience  and  co-operation  between  the  various 
sectors  of  the  content  industry,  between  European  and  national  policy  makers,  and 
between the supply and user sides of the content market. 

The meetings  will focus  on: 

• 

long-term 
developments in markets, technologies, industries and poUcies 

scenarios,  updated  whenever 

justified  by  major 

international 

•  key  issues  of  common  interest  to  market  actors  from  different  sectors  and  from 

different  Member  States,  such as legal aspects and quality assurance 

•  obstacles 

to  market  development  and  recommendations 

to 

the 

industries, 

• 

administrations and users to overcome them 
the  execution  of  INFO2000,  making  recommendations  on  orientations  and 
priorities. 

Studies  will  be  carried  out  to  monitor  changes  in  the  European  and  global  content 
markets and provide in-depth analysis of key issues. 

4. 2.  Spreading  the use of multimedia  content standards 

Standards  for  the  structuring  and  presentation  of  information,  and  standards  for 
content  encoding,  including  terminology,  are  essential  in  order  to  facilitate  the 
exchange  of  documents  and  publications,  and  to  enable  the  exploitation,  access, 
maintenance and re-use of content. 

The work started  in this domain under the IMPACT programme will be continued  and 
extended.  Actions  will be  supported  that  raise  awareness  of  and  stimulate  the  use  of 
existing  content  standards  through  workshops  and  electronic  fora  and  by  publishing 
reports on paper and  electronically. 

4.3.  Encouraging  skills development at European level 

In  order  to  stimulate  skills  development,  the  relevant  European  associations  will  be 
encouraged  to  develop  and  implement  measures  to  equip  the  European  content 
providers  with  the  necessary  skills  to  enter  the  age  of  multimedia  and  interactivity. 
Actions to be supported will normally be based on a three-staged  approach: 

V 

• 
• 

• 

identification  of the most urgent training needs 
development of pilot courses to test the effectiveness  and efficiency  of the 
proposed  actions 
launching of the activities in the relevant parts of the content 
industry and in the educational and training systems. 

The  first  two  steps  could  be  supported  under  INFO2000.  The  third  step  would  fall 
within  the  remit  of  programmes  Uke  SOCRATES  and  LEONARDO,  thus  achieving 
important multipUer  effects. 

The content industry will be extensively consulted in order to identify  urgent needs and 
key areas. Representatives  of universities and vocational training establishments will be 
closely associated with these initiatives. The role of the Community will mainly consist 
of stimulating, co-ordinating and enabling this process. 

32 

ANNEX H 

INDICATIVE BREAKDOWN OF EXPENDITURE 

1. Stimulating demand and raising awareness 
2. Exploiting Europe's pubUc sector information 
3. Triggering European  multimedia potential 
4.  Support actions 

30-40% 
18-23% 
33-45% 
7-12% 

Total 

100 % 

This  breakdown  does  not  exclude  the  fact  that  a  project  could  relate  to  several 
activities. 

33 

ANNEX  m 

THE MEANS FOR IMPLEMENTING INFO2000 

1.  The  Commission will implement  the  programme  in accordance  with the  technical 

content specified  in Annex I. 

2.  The programme will be executed through indirect action and wherever possible on 
a  shared-cost  basis.  The  Community's  financial  contribution  for  shared-cost 
projects  shall  normally  not  exceed  50%  of  the  cost  of  the  project,  with 
progressively  lower  participation  the  nearer  the  project  is  to  the  market  place. 
Special  add-on  incentives  can  be  provided  to  encourage  participation  by  SMEs 
and less favoured  regions. 

3.  The  selection  of  shared-cost  projects  will  normally  be  based  on  the  usual 
procedure  of calls for  proposals published  in the  Official  Journal  of the  European 
Communities.  The  content  of  the  calls  for  proposals  will  be  defined  in  close 
consultation with the relevant  experts  and  according  to  the  procedure  referred  to 
in  Article  5  of  the  Decision.  The  main  criterion  for  supporting  projects  through 
calls for  proposals  will be  their  potential  contribution  to  achieving  the  objectives 
of the  programme.  Implementation  procedures  will  accommodate  the  interests  of 
all kinds of market operators and facilitate their participation in the programme. 

4.  The Commission may also implement a more flexible funding  scheme than the call 
for  proposals  in  order  to  provide  incentives  for  the  creation  of  partnerships,  in 
particular involving  SMEs and organisations in less favoured  regions,  or for  other 
exploratory  activities in different  segments of the multimedia  content  market.  This 
scheme might be operated  on a permanent basis. 

5.  The  Commission  will  make  provision  for  considering  in  exceptional  cases 
unsolicited project  proposals which involve a particularly promising  and  significant 
multimedia  market  development,  a  highly  innovative  approach  or  an  exceptional 
technology or methodology,  and which cannot be submitted  within the normal call 
for  proposals  procedure.  The  objective  of  avoiding  market  distortion  will  be 
maintained. 

6.  The detailed arrangements for the procedures referred  to under points 4 and  5 will 
be  implemented  through  the  consultative  committee  procedure  (type  I)  and  in 
accordance with the  Commission's financial regulations.  They will be published  in 
the Official  Journal of the European Communities. 

7.  Projects  fully  financed  by  the  Commission  within  the  framework  of  study  and 
services  contracts  will  be  implemented  through  calls  for  tenders  in  accordance 
with  the  Commission's  Financial  Regulations.  Transparency  will  be  achieved  by 
publishing the work  programme  and  circulating  it to  trade  associations  and  other 
interested bodies. 

8.  For  the  implementation  of  the  programme  the  Commission  will  also  undertake 

preparatory,  accompanying  and  support  activities  designed  to  achieve  the  general 
objectives  of  the  programme  and  the  specific  aims  of  each  action  line.  This 
includes  activities  such as: studies  and  consultancy  in support  of this  programme; 
preliminary  actions  in  preparation  of  future  activities;  measures  aimed  at 
facilitating  participation  in  the  programme  as  well  as  facilitating  access  to  the 
results  produced  under  the  programme;  publications  and  activities  for  the 
dissemination,  promotion  and  exploitation  of  results;  analysis  of  possible  socio 
economic  consequences  associated  with  the  programme;  and  support  activities 
such as observation  and analysis  of the multimedia  content  market,  spreading  the 
use  of  multimedia  content  standards,  and  encouraging  skills  development  at 
European level. 

9.  Participation in this programme by international  organisations  may be financed, in 
exceptional  cases,  on  the  same  basis  as  that  of  legal  entities  established  in  the 
Community. 

55~ 

FINANCIAL  STATEMENT 

1.  TITLE OF OPERATION 

INFO2000,  a multi-annual  Community  programme  to  stimulate  the  development  of a 
European multimedia content industry and to  encourage the use of multimedia  content 
in the emerging information  society 

2.  BUDGET HEADING INVOLVED 

ItemB5-723 

3.  LEGAL BASIS 

Article  130 of the EU Treaty and Council Decision 

/95 of 

. 

. 1995. 

4.  DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION 

4.1.  General objectives of operation 

Three long-term  strategic  objectives  underpin  the INFO2000 programme:  to  facilitate 
the development of the European content industry; to  optimise the contribution of new 
information  services  to  growth,  competitiveness  and  employment  in  Europe;  and  to 
maximise the  contribution  of advanced  information  services to  the professional,  social 
and cultural development of the citizens of Europe. 

These  objectives  aim  at  maintaining,  extending  and  exploiting  Europe's  strength  in 
content whilst  narrowing  the gap with our  competitors.  They  encourage  an integrated 
development  across the European Union and  so reduce the risks that  different  rates of 
progress might  lead to  a two-tier  economy  and  a society  composed  of two  segments: 
the  information rich and the information  poor. 

4.2 

Duration 

The programme will be carried out over the period 01.01.1996 - 31.12.1999. 

5.  CLASSIFICATION  OF EXPENDITURE OR REVENUE 

5.1. Non-compulsory  expenditure 
5.2. Differentiated  appropriations 
5.3. Type of revenue involved 

Revenues provided by contributions of third parties towards activities under action line 
1.1  will,  where  applicable,  be  re-used  pursuant  to  Article  27.2  of  the  Financial 
regulations  of 21 December  1977 as last modified  by Regulation  610/90  of  13 March 
1990. 

3Q> 

6.  TYPE OF EXPENDITURE 

6.1.100% subsidy 

Projects fully financed by the Community will be implemented through calls for  tenders 
in  accordance  with  the  Commission's  Financial Regulations.  Full financing will  apply 
generally  to  activities  such as  studies, workshops  and  seminars  under  action  lines  2.1 
and  3.2,  and to the programme  support  actions under  action line 4. Transparency  will 
be  achieved  by  publishing  the  work  programme  and  circulation  of  it  to  trade 
associations and other interested bodies. 

6.2.  Subsidy  for  joint  financing  with  other  sources  in  the  public  and  private 

sector 

The selection of shared-cost  projects will normally be based  on the usual procedure of 
calls for proposals published in the Official  Journal of the European  Communities. This 
type of financing will apply to most of the activities defined  under action lines  1, 2 and 
3  and  in  particular  to  the  financing  of  pilot  projects.  The  content  of  the  calls  for 
proposals  will  be  defined  in  close  consultation  with  the  relevant  experts  and  the 
programme  committee  referred  to  in  the  Council  Decision.  The  main  criterion  for 
supporting  projects  through  calls for  proposals  will  be  their  potential  contribution  to 
achieving the objectives  of the programme. The Community's financial contribution  for 
shared-cost  projects  shall  normally  not  exceed  50%  of  the  cost  of  the  project,  with 
progressively  lower participation the nearer the project  is to the market  place.  Special 
add-on  incentives  will  be  provided  to  encourage  participation  by  SMEs  and  less 
favoured  regions. 

6.3. Interest subsidy  Not  applicable 

6.4. Other 

Not  applicable 

6.5.  Should  the operation  prove an economic  success,  is there  provision  for  all or 

part of the Community  contribution  to be reimbursed? No 

6.6. Will  the  proposed  operation  cause  any  change  in  the  level  of  revenue?  If so, 

what sort of change and what type of revenue is involved? No 

7.  FINANCIAL  IMPACT  ON  APPROPRIATIONS  FOR  OPERATIONS 

(PART B OF THE BUDGET) 

7.1. Method  of calculating total cost of operation 

The  amount  of appropriations  needed  to finance the  Community's  contribution  to  the 
execution  of  the  INFO2000  programme  takes  into  account  financial  parameters 
derived  from  past  experience  and  the  nature  of the  actions  proposed  for  realising  the 
specific  objectives  defined  under  point  9.1. These  unit  costs  and  activity  levels  have 
been considered  in determining the amounts indicated in the following table. 

< #-

7.2. Breakdown  of costs 

The breakdown of commitment appropriations by action line in MECU (current  prices) 
is indicated by the foUowing table: 

ACTION  LINE 
Stimulating 
awareness 

demand 

and 

raising 

1996 
7 

1997 
9 

1998 
10 

1999 
11 

TOTAL 
37 

Exploiting  Europe's 
information 
Triggering 
potential 
Programme support  actions 

European 

public 

sector 

2 

multimedia 

8 

2 

4 

10 

2 

8 

5 

2 

8 

22 

10 

33 

2 

8 

TOTAL 

19 

25 

25 

31 

100 

The  above  breakdown  takes  account  of  the  nature,  volume  and  unit  costs  of  the 
individual activities defined  in detail in Annex I of the Council Decision. 

7.3. Indicative schedule of commitment and payment  appropriations 

The total  amount for  the programme  is estimated  at  100 MECU  (current  prices)  over 
the period 01.01.1996-31.12.1999  and is scheduled as follows: 

SITUATION 
END 94 
/ 

BUDGET 
95 
/ 

PDB 
1996 
19 

IP 
1997 
25 

IP 
1998 
25 

IP 
1999 
31 

IP 
2000 
-

TOTAL 

100 

8.  ANTI-FRAUD  MEASURES  PLANNED 

Overall  monitoring  will  be  performed  by  a  committee  composed  of  delegates  of 
Member  States.  Specific  monitoring  criteria  and  procedures  taking  into  account  the 
nature  of the  action lines will be  developed  at the  start  of the  programme  and  applied 
periodically during the programme implementation phase. Officials  of the  Commission, 
where necessary assisted by independent  experts, will verify  the proper  implementation 
of  the  projects  and  studies  prior  to  payment,  taking  into  account  contractual 
obligations and principles of good management.  There will be administrative  control by 
administrative  services  of DG  XIII  and  by DGs  XIX  and  XX.  Audit  by the  Court  of 
Auditors  in accordance  with the  Treaty  will apply.  At the  mid-term  and  at  the  end  of 
the  programme,  an evaluation  report  will be  drawn up  by independent  experts  on  the 
results obtained in implementing the  action lines referred  to  in Article 2 of the  Council 
Decision. 

3? 

9.  ELEMENTS  OF COST-EFFECTIVENESS  ANALYSIS 

9.1. Specific  objectives and target  population 

Specific  objectives 

To  achieve  the  general  objectives  defined  under  4.1., the  INFO2000  programme  will 
stimulate demand for,  and use of,  multimedia content  and create favourable  conditions 
for the development of the European multimedia content industry, by: 

• 
• 
• 

stimulating demand and raising awareness 
exploiting Europe's public sector  information 
triggering European multimedia potential. 

The  specific  objectives  are  to  accelerate  market  uptake  of  multimedia  products  and 
services  by  mobiUsing  the  users;  to  unleash  the  economic  and  cultural  potential  of 
public  sector  information;  and  to  strengthen  the  international  and  pan-European 
dimension of the emerging European multimedia content industry. 

Target  population 

Participants  will  be  drawn  from  both  users  and  suppliers  in  primarily  content-related 
activities  in  the  information  value  chain.  Those  involved  in  end-user  equipment, 
communications  software  and  hardware  and  production  tools  will  be  invited  to 
participate  on  the  basis  of  the  specific  contributions  that  they  can  make  to  the 
programme. 

9.2. Grounds for the operation 

Subsidiarity 

The  proposals  take  account  of  the  principle  of  subsidiarity  between  the  Community 
and  Member  States  and  between  public  and  private  sector  roles,  as  outlined  in  the 
Commission's action plan "Europe's Way to the Information  Society" (COM(94)347 of 
19.7.94). In  line with  article  3B  of the Maastricht  Treaty,  the  programme's  activity  is 
only directed at those areas where there is added value at European level. 

To  ensure that the actions fit into the global context,  specific  attention will be given to 
linking  them to  the  recent  G7  initiatives  and  to  the  relevant  activities  of  international 
organisations such as the OECD, the WTO, WIPO and the Council of Europe. 

Synergy between the national and European content  policy initiatives will be  favoured. 
Apart  from  financial  support  for  specific  activities  with  a  European  dimension,  the 
Commission  will  encourage  the  exchange  of  know-how  and  experience,  the  use  of 
common  communication  and  information  facilities  and  co-operation  between  the 
various  organisations  in  joint  projects.  Together,  the  proposed  actions  favour  the 
further  consolidation  of  the  functioning  of  the  single  market.  They  provide  for 
economies  of  scale in particular  through  experience  exchange, joint  pilot  projects  and 
demonstrators,  and  stimulation  of  pan-European  information  service  provision  in 

3<? 

support  of  a wide  range  of  Community  policies.  They  aim  at  favouring  an  integrated 
development  across  the  European  Union,  by  reducing  the  risks  of  different  speed 
developments leading to a two-tier economy and a society composed  of two  segments: 
the information rich and the information  poor. 

Intervention  modes 

The  costs  of  interventions  will  be  kept  as  low  as  possible  through  recourse  to 
competitive  mechanisms  in the  form  of  calls  for  tenders  and  calls  for  proposals.  The 
Commission's  contribution  to  shared-cost  actions  will  normally  not  exceed  50%. 
DupUcation  of work  will be  avoided  and  synergy  with  ongoing  work  at  national  and 
international  level  will  be  favoured  by  wide  consultation  on  the  work  programme. 
Common facilities  will be used  to  the  largest  extent  possible  for  supporting  the  range 
of envisaged  actions. The choice of intervention  modes takes  due  account  of the  mid 
term  evaluation  of  the  IMPACT2  programme,  the  orientations  laid  down  in  the 
Bangemann report  and the  Commission's  action  plan COM(94)  347,  as well  as  of  the 
results of various consultations with industry, users and Member  States  representatives 
in the preparation of the current programme proposal. 

Spin-off  and multiplier  effects 

Spin-off  effects  of content-related  actions are likely as content provision contributes  to 
the  attainment  of critical mass for  delivery  networks.  The  amount  intended  to  finance 
pilot  projects  will  be  used,  in  particular,  to  attract  possible  additional  sources  of 
funding  from  the  partners  concerned,  thereby  having  a  multiplier  effect  on  the 
development of the European multimedia content market. 

Factors of uncertainty 

The  main  factors  of  uncertainty  which  could  affect  the  specific  results  of  the 
programme  are inherent  technology  push/demand  pull uncertainties  and the  speed  and 
shape of regulatory and legal reforms. 

9.3. Monitoring and evaluation  of the operation 

At  the  mid-term  and  before  the  end  of  the  programme,  an  evaluation  report  will  be 
drawn  up  by  independent  experts  on  the  results  obtained  in  implementing  the  action 
lines referred  to in Article 2 of the Council Decision. The evaluation shall take  account 
of the  1995 base position as described  in the  "Study  on assessing the present  situation 
of the market for electronic information  services for  professional  purposes in the EEA" 
(MSSTUDY), and of its evolution to be assessed by study updates. 

In addition to the measurement  of the evolution  of the base position  and the impact  of 
the programme actions on this evolution,  for  each of the activities mentioned  in Annex 
I  of the  Council  Decision  a limited  number  of  activity  performance  indicators  will  be 
monitored.  The most important performance  indicators include the  following: 

For  action  line  1,  stimulating  demand  and  raising  awareness:  effectiveness  and 
efficiency  of national awareness organisations; scope, quality and volume  of  awareness 

and training activity; and degree and quality of experience exchange and  co-operation. 

For  action  line  2,  exploiting  Europe's  public  sector  information:  catalysing  effect  of 
pilots  in  terms  of  degree  of  standardisation  of  national  services  and  resources, 
networking  among  inventories,  integration  of  inventories  with  intellectual  property 
rights trading systems and share of public/private joint  projects. 

For  action Une 3, triggering European multimedia potential:  catalysing  effect  of pilots 
in terms  of number  of companies  involved,  share of  SME  and Less Favoured  Region 
participation,  trans-national/cross-sectoral  co-operation,  public/private  sector  co 
operation and facilitation  of cross-border intellectual property rights trading. 

9.4. Coherence with  financial  programming 

The  operation  is  included  in  the  financial  programming  of  DG  XIII  for  the  years 
concerned. 

The  objectives  of the  proposed  operation  correspond  to  broader  objectives  defined  in 
DG XTTTs financial programming  and to  the  objectives  relating  to  the  development  of 
the  European  information  society  as  mentioned  in  the  Commission's  action  plan 
COM(94)347  final  of  19  July  1994  "Europe's  Way  to  the  Information  Society  -An 
Action Plan". 

t/ 

10.  ADMINISTRATIVE  EXPENDITURE 

10.1. Additional  Commission  staff 

Beyond  the  staff  levels  associated  with the IMPACT2  programme  it  is estimated  that 
an additional aUocation of 3 A,  IB  and  2 C posts  is required,  without  prejudice  from 
where they will be derived from. 

10.2. Amount of staff and administrative expenditure  involved 

The following  annual amounts of administrative expenditure are  foreseen: 

10.2.1. Seconded  national  experts 

A-1520 

Total expenditure: ECU 210,000 

Three national civil servants,  each responsible for five Member  States, will need  to  be 
seconded  to  co-ordinate  content  poUcy actions between the EU  and  national  levels. In 
addition,  three  national  civil  servants,  each  responsible  for  a  set  of  neighbouring 
programmes,  will need  to  be  seconded  to  co-ordinate  INFO2000  with  other  relevant 
complementary programmes. 

10.2.2. Meetings of experts 

A-250 

Total expenditure: ECU 324,000 

In  order  to  support  the working  of the  expert  meetings  (4  meetings),  and  the  project 
activities  (5  calls with  1 meeting), the network  of national  awareness  organisations  (3 
meetings),  and the user  groups  (10  groups  with  1.5  meetings),  a total  envelope  of 27 
meetings with an average cost of  12,000 ECU is requested. 

10.2.3. Committee  meetings 

A-2510 

Total expenditure: ECU  120,000 

The INFO2000 Programme Committee referred  to in the Council Decision will hold on 
average 6 meetings/year  at an average cost of 20,000 ECU 

10.2.4. Missions 

A-130 

Total expenditure: ECU 240,000 

The  total  mission  costs  for  Commission  staff  and  seconded  national  experts  are 
estimated  at 240,000 ECU. 

The  actual  allocation  of  the  necessary  administrative  resources  will  follow  from  the 
relevant  Commission decision on this question,  taking  into  account  the  staff  posts  and 
supplementary amounts which will have been approved by the Budgetary  Authority. 

%? 

INFORMATION PLAN 

0. 

RESPONSIBLE SERVICE 

DGXin-E 

1. 

SUBJECT 

INFO2000, a multi-annual Community programme to  stimulate the development  of a 
European multimedia content industry and to encourage the use of multimedia content 
in the emerging information society 

Code number: 

21132.3 

2.  NATURE AND LEGAL BASIS 

Communication from the  Commission  to  the European  Parliament  and  the  Council 
concerning a multi-annual Community programme to  stimulate the  development  of a 
European multimedia content industry and to encourage the use of multimedia content 
in the emerging information  society and proposal for  a Council Decision  adopting a 
multi-annual  Community  programme  to  stimulate  the  development  of  a  European 
multimedia  content  industry  and to  encourage the use  of  multimedia  content  in the 
emerging information society (INFO2000). 

Article 130 of the EU Treaty 

3. 

TIMETABLE 

It  is  desirable  that  the European  Parliament,  the  Council,  the  Economic  and  Social 
Committee and the Committee of the Regions take account of the Communication and 
the proposal for a Council Decision with the relevant annexes in the second quarter of 
1995. 

4. 

INCIDENCE AND PROBABLE REACTIONS 
ON THE INITIATIVE MENTIONED UNDER POINT 1 

A) Council, European Pariiament, the Economic and Social Committee, the Committee 
of the Regions: + 
B) General Public: + 
C)  Specific  Publics:  +  Programme  participants  will  be  drawn  from  the  electronic 
content value chain particularly in such sectors as content  creation,  development and 
packaging, and end-user access. 
D) Opinion leaders: + 
E) Political decision makers: + 

<43 

5. 

REFERENCE TO AVAILABLE  OPINION  SURVEYS 

No 

6. 

OPPORTUNITY  OF AN INFORMATION  PLAN 

YES LIMITED 

Press release 

YES  on adoption of the Communication by the Commission 

Press conference 

YES  on adoption of the Communication by the Commission 

Publication in the O J  YES  on adoption of the programme by the Council 

DGs  CONCERNED 

7. 
No 

8. 

VISAS 

a) INFORMATION 

CORRESPONDENT 
DGXÏÏI 

b) DG X 

c) SPP 

Date: 
Name: 

Date: 
Name: 

Date: 
Name: 

</«/ 

R E L A T I O N S H I PS  OF  INFO2000  W I TH  O T H ER  EU  P R O G R A M M ES 

P R O G R A M ME  C H A R A C T E R I S T I CS 

IN  Ft)2(KM) 

INFO2000  is  a  Community  programme  to  encourage  Europe's  content  providers  to  develop  new  multimedia  products  and  services  and  to  stimulate  user  demand  for  these  products  and  services 
ENFO2000  aims  at  creating  favourable  conditions  for  the  development  of  the  European  multimedia  content  industry,  complementing  other  important  policy  actions  announced  in  the  Commission's 
action  plan  COM(95)347  final  "  Europe's  Way  to  the  Information  Society  "  such  as  liberalisation  of  telecommunications  and  provision  of  a  clear  and  stable  regulatory  framework.  INFO2000  will 
focus  on  the  transition  from  print  to electronic  publishing  and  on the  interactive  multimedia  services  that  are currently  emerging.  Three  lines  of action  are  devised  to  tackle  market  bottlenecks  and  to 
meet  the  needs  of  both  users  and  producers  in  this  market  area:  -  actions  to  stimulate  demand  and  raise  awareness,  -  actions  to  exploit  Europe's  public  sector  information,  and  actions  to  trigger 
European  multimedia  potential. 

_ _ __ 

INFO2000  R E L A T I O N S H I PS 

IT  AND  ACTS 

TELEMATICS 

MEDIA  II 

RAPHAEL 

SOCRATES 
AND 
LEONARDO 

SMEs  AND 
CRAFT 
SECTOR 

is  focusing  on  applications 

technologies  (addressing  software  technologies,  technologies  for  IT 

research  and  technological  development  programmes  in  the  field  of  information 

is  about  creating  favourable  conditions  for  the  development  of  the private  sector  content  industry. 

IT  and  ACTS  cover  infrastructure-oriented 
components  and  subsystems  and  multimedia  technologies)  and  advanced  communication 
technologies  (addressing  the  technological  base  for  interactive  digital  multimedia  services,  photonics,  high 
speed  networking,  mobility  and  personal  communications,  intelligent  networks  and  service  engineering,  and  quality,  security  and  safety  of  communications  services  and  systems).  In  contrast, 
INFO2000  is content-oriented  and  concentrates  on the  use  of  both  existing  and future  technologies  and narrows  the gap  between  research  and  market.  In particular  contrast  to the ACTS  programme, 
INFO2000  is  delivery  channel  neutral  and  aims  at  stimulating  multimedia  content  for  both  network-based  and  off-line  solutions.  In  short,  IT  and  ACTS  stimulate  the  required  research  for 
providing  better  'boxes  and  pipes'  or  information  infrastructures  of  the  future,  while  INFO2000  is  concerned  with  content  production,  distribution  and  access  over  current  and  future 
technology  boxes  and  pipes,  enabled  by  previous  research  efforts.  INFO2000 will  thus  be  building  on  the  results  of  the  IT  and  ACTS  programmes  as  and  when  they  emerge. 
in  the public  sector.  INFO2000  is 
Tlie  specific  programme  Telematic Applications  of  Common  Interest,  which  is  applied  research-,  network-  and  application-oriented, 
In  short,  Telematics  stimulates  applied  research  for  a  limited 
delivery  channel  neutral, 
number  of  public  sector  application  domains  such  as  healthcare,  education,  transport  and  libraries, 
thereby  setting  an  example  in  areas  which  come  under  government  aegis,  while 
measures  proposed  by  INFO2000  focus  on  creating  favourable  conditions  for  the  development  of  the  private  sector  European  multimedia  content  industry  and  of  the  multimedia  content 
market,  where  information  products  and  services  are  traded  for  a  price. 
MEDIA  II addresses  tlie  specific  needs  of  the  audiovisual  segment,  which  is  one  sector  of  the  content  industry.  The  content  industry  at  large  is  composed  of  those  enterprises  involved  in  content 
creation,  development,  packaging  and  distribution.  It  comprises,  on  tlie  one  hand,  the  different  segments  of  print  publishing  (newspapers,  books,  magazines,  corporate  publishing)  and  electronic 
publishing  (on-line  databases,  videotex  services,  audiotex  services,  fax-  and  CD-based  services,  videogames)  and,  on  the  other,  the  audiovisual  industry  (television,  video,  radio,  audio  and  cinema). 
INFO2000  will  contribute  to  tlie  establishment  of  a  comprehensive  European  content  policy,  addressing  print  publishing  and  electronic  publishing  segments  in  complement  to  content  policy 
measures  proposed  by  the  Commission  for  the  audiovisual  segment.  Tlie  focus  of  INFO2000  is  on  the  transition  from  print  to  electronic  publishing  and  on  the  interactive  multimedia 
information 
services  that  are  rapidly  emerging. 
In  short,  both  programmes  address  different  content  segments  and  propose  actions  adapted  to  each  segment's  specific  needs  over  the  programme 
period.  In  the  longer  term,  due  to  convergence  of  technologies,  operators  and  markets,  programme  actions  are  likely  to  converge. 
Firstly,  RAPHAEL  is  an  instrument  of  EU  cultural  policy,  while  INFO2000  is  basically  an  instrument  of  EU  information  society  policy.  Secondly,  RAPHAEL  is  a  vertical  programme  addressing 
specifically  the  cultural  heritage  sector,  while  MFO2000  is  essentially  a horizontal  programme  addressing  more generic  questions  in  relation  to the  information  society.  Thirdly,  RAPHAEL  covers a 
wide  range  of sector-specific  policy  actions  relevant  for  the EU  cultural  heritage  sector,  while  INFO2000  proposes  a  limited  number  of  actions  focusing  on  common  structural  problems  of a  range 
of sectors.  Common  ground  between  both programmes  emerges  in tlie areas  of interplay  between  multimedia  use  for  making  cultural  assets  more  visible,  accessible  and  affordable  as part  of  cultural 
policy  (RAPHAEL)  and  exploitation  of cultural  assets  for multimedia  content  industry  development  purposes  (INFO2000).  In  short,  INFO2000  and  RAPHAËL  are  different  in  terms  of  overall 
policy  domain,  sectoral  coverage  and  range  of  proposed  actions.  Both  programmes  address,  however,  in  a  complementary  way,  limited  common  ground,  related  to  the  exploitation  of 
European  cultural  heritage  through  multimedia. 
The  SOCRATES  and  LEONARDO  programmes  establish  general  Community  frames  for  education  and  training  policy  actions  for  the  educational  systems  and  for  a  wide  range  of  economic  sectors, 
while  LNFO2000  concentrates  on  the  specif  c  needs  of  the  multimedia  content  industry,  by  setting  up  pilots  to  be  extended  under  the  SOCRATES  and  LEONARDO  programmes.  INFO2000, 
SOCRATES  and  LEONARDO  are  therefore  complementary  as  on  the  one  hand  LNFO2000  pilot  actions  can  be  extended  favouring  large-scale  use  of  adequate  multimedia  content  in  education  and 
vocational  training  contexts  and  on  the  other  hand  SOCRATES  and  LEONARDO  schemes  can  be  used  for  the  purposes  of  skills  development  within  the  multimedia  content  industry.  LEONARDO 
addresses  predominantly  supply-sector  needs,  while  INFO2000,  in  addition  to  skills-development  actions  aimed  at  the  supply  side  of  the  multimedia  content  industry,  also  proposes  awareness  and 
training  actions  aimed  at  the  demand  side.  In  short,  INFO2000  stimulates  pilot  and  experimental  actions,  while  SOCRATES/LEONARDO  provide  the  frames  for  large-scale  application. 
The  purpose  of  the  Integrated  Programme  in  favour  of  SMEs  and  tlie  Craft  sector  is,  in  the  context  of the  White  Paper,  to  initiate  in  a  concerted  maimer  measures  facilitating  reciprocal  consultation  | 
between  Member  States  and,  where  necessary,  co-ordination  between  Member  States  with  a  view  to  improving  the  business  environment  by  simplifying  administrative  procedures,  promoting 
support  measures  for  enterprises  and  identification  of  ways  in which  the  Community  can  contribute  to the development  of enterprises.  DNFO2000  addresses  the  multimedia  content  industry  which  is, 
apart  from  a  limited  number  of  international  and  global  players,  composed  of  mainly  SMEs.  The  INFO2000  programme  aims  at  stimulating  this  sector  and  its  users.  In  short,  the  Integrated 
A' Li!Si*ilnJ [ile  a nd  IN F O 2 0 0 () _ar e  f u lly  com pi ementary  in  improving  the  competitiveness  of  SMEs  in  Europe. 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(95) 149  final 

DOCUMENTS 

EN 

15 

Catalogue number  : CB-CO-95-170-EN-C 

ISBN 92-77-88129-1 

Office for Official Publications of the European Communities 

L-2985 Luxembourg