European Digital Content on the Global Networks eContent European Digital Content on the Global Networks Presented in Hong Kong Feb 98. Heli Lehtimäki European Commission Tartu 9 December 2002 1

Agenda Context Scope of eContent programme Means of implementation Participation Tartu 9 December 2002

The ability to deliver rich content over the networks is increasing... Nua.com data 580 million people internet access (Q2 2002) 185 million of those live in Europe, and the number is growing eEurope+ 2003 Progress report: Estonia, page 20 „When the Estonian telecommunications market was liberalised, Internet access tariffs were significantly reduced. Over the period August 2001 - March 2002 the number of ADSL connections almost doubled (from 10 000 to 20 000). This increase could have been driven by the fact that an ADSL connection is only slightly more expensive than 20 hours dial-up access in peak time. Whereas 1 in 4 of Estonia‘s population were Internet users during 2001, it is estimated that the current ratio is 2 people in 5.“ ...and more people are connecting to the internet through mobile devices Tartu 9 December 2002

Europe has ...but it is Rich content base Long publishing tradition Assets in linguistic and cultural customisation World ranking players ...but it is Lagging in e-publishing Tartu 9 December 2002

EU Actions for digital content eContent: Digital content and language diversity on the global networks Regulatory framework: Copyrights in the Information Society Access and exploitation of public sector information Research: IST Programme, FP 6 Audio-visual and Culture: Media Plus programme Framework programme for Culture Tartu 9 December 2002

eContent political background eEurope 2002 Action Plan A cheaper, faster, secure Internet Investing in people and skills Stimulate the use of the Internet eEurope+ The way to involve candidate countries eEurope 2005 Action Plan Stimulating services, applications and content Addressing underlying broadband infrastructure Tartu 9 December 2002

eEurope 2005 objectives by 2005, Europe should have: modern online public services e-government e-learning services e-health services a dynamic e-business environment enabled by widespread availability of broadband access at competitive prices a secure information infrastructure Through provision of European quality content (Adopted 28.5.2002) eEurope 2005 actions Connecting public administrations, schools, health care to broadband Interactive public services, accessible for all, and offered on multiple platforms Provide online health services Removal of obstacles to the deployment of broadband networks Review of legislation affecting e-business Creation of a Cyber Security Task Force Tartu 9 December 2002

The objectives of the eContent programme improving access for all to high-quality digital content on the global networks in a multiplicity of languages supports the increased availability, use and distribution of European digital content Market orientated programme Tartu 9 December 2002

100 million Euro Action Line 1 Action Line 2 Action Line 3 Enhancing content production in a multilingual and multicultural environment Increasing dynamism of the digital content market Improving access to and expanding the use of public sector information 40%-45% 40%-45% 10%-15% Call 1 Call 2 Call 3 Call 4 24-26 million 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Tartu 9 December 2002

(1.1) Cross-border information services Action line 1 Public sector information (1.1) Cross-border information services based on public sector information. What are we looking for? - Value added information services based on * public-private partnerhsips * - The business case - Re-use aspect Tartu 9 December 2002

(1.2) Establishment of European digital data collections Action line 1 Public sector information (1.2) Establishment of European digital data collections based on public sector information What are we looking for? Projects that will show: Coverage of a considerable part of Europe Scalability Impact of the action on the digital content market; Involvement of Candidate Countries where appropriate Tartu 9 December 2002

(2.1) Partnerships between content and language industries: Action line 2 Multilingual and multicultural environment What are we looking for? (2.1) Partnerships between content and language industries: Localisation of applications and services addressing multimedia content accessible through various platforms and devices Tartu 9 December 2002

(2.2) Projects strengthening the linguistic infrastructure in Europe: Action line 2 Multilingual and multicultural environment Action line 1 Public sector information What are we looking for? (2.2) Projects strengthening the linguistic infrastructure in Europe: - Networking of existing regional and national resources and their access and use by content actor - Development of new multilingual resources for less widely spoken languages - Covering an adequate number of languages Tartu 9 December 2002

Demonstration Projects Fixed deadline calls Year 2003 Demonstration Projects Fixed deadline calls Consortiums consisting of At least 2 partners from at least 2 countries A lead partner reporting to the EC Normal size 5 - 8 partners EC Contributes 50% - Up to € 2.5 million Projects normally run 24 months (up to 30) The final result belongs to the consortium Showcase the use of information Tartu 9 December 2002

Feasibility Projects Continuous submission Call 3 Year 2003 Feasibility Projects Continuous submission Consortiums consisting of At least 2 partners from at least 2 countries A lead partner reporting to the EC Normal size 2 - 4 partners EC Contributes 50% - Up to € 200,000 Projects normally run 9 months (up to 12) Not leading to a demonstration project Designed to support the participation of Candidate Countries Tartu 9 December 2002

Who can participate? Countries Organisations 15 EU Member states. Call 3 Year 2003 Who can participate? Countries 15 EU Member states. EFTA Countries: Liechtenstein, Norway, Iceland. Candidate countries: Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Hungary (as of today) Romania (Commission agreed on 1 August 2002) Malta, Turkey, Slovenia (Expected agreement by Commission Dec 2002) Lithuania, Czech Republic (EC procedure in process) Other countries and international organisations can participate without funding. Organisations Public, Private, Non-Profit Tartu 9 December 2002

eContent keywords: What eContent is not: No technology research & development No eGovernment No pure translation eContent keywords: Business dimension – close to market Partnerships Public-private Content – language industries Readily available technology Tartu 9 December 2002

Name of the game Candidate Countries a political priority In proposal submission and selection Candidate Countries on equal footing with Member States No particular measures undertaken towards participation in running projects High subscription rate : Fair competition and excellent quality promoted throughout Europe Tartu 9 December 2002

Tentative roadmap 2002-2003 Workprogramme 2003-2004 adoption Dec-02 Call 3 Call 4 Tentative roadmap 2002-2003 Workprogramme 2003-2004 adoption Dec-02 Defines priorities and means of implementation for the last two years of the programme Fixed deadline Call III to be published around January 2003 (ca. 3 months) Continuous submission scheme valid until 2004 Budget 2003 around 29 M € Tartu 9 December 2002

Contact points & info Help desk Pre-proposals http://www.cordis.lu/econtent Help desk eContent@cec.eu.int Pre-proposals infso-calls.econtent@cec.eu.int Tartu 9 December 2002