WRITTEN QUESTION E-1897/02 by Brice Hortefeux (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Competitiveness.
Date: 2002-07-01
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European Employment Strategy, distance learning, economic policy, information technology, international competition, labour shortage, level of education, vocational training, work productivity

C 137 E/34

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

12.6.2003

(2003/C 137 E/038)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1890/02

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(1 July 2002)

Subject: Regional coding of DVD players

Following my written questions regarding the regional coding of DVD players in June 2000 (E-1509/00,
E-1510/00 (1)) and the decision to investigate this further in June 2001, could the Commission please
provide an update on work being carried out on this subject and any advances that have been made.

(1) OJ C 53 E, 20.2.2001, pp. 157-158.

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(6 September 2002)

As the Honourable Member is aware, the Commission opened an investigation into the digital video disc
(DVD) regional coding system in June 2001. The position of the major film production companies is that
the basic purpose of this system is to allow them to protect their copyrighted intellectual property and the
traditional pattern of releasing their films at different times in different parts of the world, as well as to
protect against piracy.

The Commission understands the Honourable Member’s concerns (as outlined in his written question
E-1510/00) that this system may prevent consumers from benefiting from DVDs at potentially cheaper
prices. In the course of its investigation, the Commission has obtained significant amounts of information
relating to the establishment and ongoing operation of the regional coding system from a broad range of
film studios, DVD equipment manufacturers, and commercial
retailers. The Commission is now
completing its analysis of
the file with a view to ascertaining the system’s compatibility with the
Community competition rules.

(2003/C 137 E/039)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1897/02

by Brice Hortefeux (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(1 July 2002)

Subject: Competitiveness

According to figures published in the annual report on competitiveness, the gap in relation to the United
States is steadily widening, which suggests that the European Union is liable not to achieve the economic
objectives set in the Lisbon strategy, i.e. the aim of becoming the most dynamic area in 2010.

EU labour productivity was 0,5 % in 2001, whereas it
is 1,2 % in the US despite the recession.
The European Union is particularly lagging behind in the information and communication technologies
sector. It is also faced with a worrying shortage of skills. Educational standards are no doubt rising among
European citizens, but not rapidly enough in comparison with the United States and Japan.

In view of these alarming developments, what strategy can the Commission adopt to help remedy the
shortcomings and reverse this negative trend?

12.6.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 137 E/35

Answer given Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(16 September 2002)

It is true that the productivity gap between the EU and the United States has been widening since the
second half of the 1990s, but the annual competitiveness report has also shown that in the periods 1975-
1985, 1985-1990 and 1990-1995 labour productivity rose faster in the EU than in the United States. In
2001, one of the reasons for the EU’s poor productivity record in the EU was the 1,1 % rise in
employment compared with a 0,1 % fall in the US. Even so, the Commission considers that productivity is
of considerable importance to Europe and it keeps a close eye on productivity figures. The strategy for
reversing this negative trend was defined at the Lisbon European Council on 23/24 March 2000.

Lisbon set the EU the ambitious target of becoming the world’s most dynamic, most competitive and most
viable economy in ten years, with full employment and greater economic and social cohesion. The annual
competitiveness report stated that the structural reforms needed to achieve the Lisbon objectives have
already been identified. But it recommended that the Member States and the Commission should act to
ensure that the reforms are now rapidly implemented.

The work already achieved is encouraging. Considerable success has been achieved in certain policy areas,
such as an improved rate of transposal of internal market directives into national law, a virtual doubling in
the value of the public tenders published in the Official Journal in the second half of the 1990s and the fall
in telecommunications and electricity prices due to liberalisation of
the markets. As the annual
competitiveness report pointed out, however, there is still much to be done. The initial phases of the
reform strategy are bound to consist of defining the measures to be taken. These measures will then have
to be put into effect. Many of the reforms have yet to be adopted, and when they are, a further period
to the Barcelona European Council
will elapse before their effects are felt.
(15/16 March 2002),
to absorb this
to act
‘implementation deficit’.

the Commission called on Parliament and the Council

In its spring report

The Commission thus believes that what is needed is not so much a new strategy but dynamic action to
implement the Lisbon strategy. Measures such as unbundling the local telecommunications loop and the
new framework for electronic commerce should narrow the gap in information and communication
technologies; measures such as the new framework for public tenders and the greater openness of the
electricity and gas markets for industrial customers should improve productivity, while measures such as
the action plan on skills and mobility should promote the development of human resources in the Union.

Investment in human capital is a key factor in economic performance. Public expenditure on education is
currently 5 % of GDP in the EU and the United States (Eurostat: Structural indicators). Of those aged
between 25 and 64, 22 % have completed higher education compared with 18 % in 1995 (workforce
increase in per capita investment in human
survey). The Lisbon strategy provides for a substantial
resources. The employment policy guidelines have set objectives for improving the quality of education
and training systems and developing on-line education and training for all.

Investments in research and development (R & D) and the resulting technical progress are a major driving
force for future economic performance and the creation of skilled jobs. The Barcelona European Council
set the EU the objective of expanding its R & D to some 3 % of GDP, two-thirds being financed by the
private sector, by 2010. The Commission plans shortly to present the preliminary results of its study of
this subject. This objective forms part of the more general task of setting up the European Research Area.
Investment must be accompanied by extensive efforts to improve the overall effectiveness of research in
Europe,
through coordination of national policies, developing cooperation between business and
universities and producing and attracting more highly skilled research workers while guaranteeing them
greater mobility.

The results of the Lisbon strategy will be fully felt in the next decade; the strategy is already having an
effect on the productivity gap between the EU and the United States.