Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Measuring Interoparability: From Theory to Practice Dr. Ulrich Sandl, Head of Division Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology Regional ITU Consultation on Conformance Assessment and Interoperability for the Africa region (Nairobi, Kenya, July 2010 )

2 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The political dimension of interoperability  Interoperability means (not only)  Functional capability  But also  Competition  Lower prices  Innovation  Independence  Transparency and Openness (security)

3 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The political framework(s) in Germany and the EU  On European level  The Digital Agenda  The European Interoperability Framework  In Germany  The ICT Strategy (Germany 2015)  SAGA (Standards and Architectures fo e-government)

4 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The carrot and the stick strategy  The carrot  R&D  Public Procurement  The stick  Competition law(s)  Regulation  And...

5 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The practice: testing wether it works

6 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The challenges for interoperability testing  The dynamic technological environment  The different application areas  The convergence of new technologies  Downwards interoperability  The costs...

7 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The areas of needs from public procurement in Germany (1) Application Area Yes, there are problems Application software73,5 System software72,1 IT security53,6 Plug in card25,6 Network interfaces28,6 Micro cpontroller25,8 Storage media22,5 Chipset (CPU)21,9 IW, 2009 Institut für Wirtschaft, 2009

8 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The areas of needs from public procurement in Germany (2)  High Guidelines for the implementation of standards Consistent interpretation of standards Acceptance testing incl. interoperability confirmation  Low Conformance testing  addressed with early and continuous consideration of interoperability aspects in public procurement

9 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 How to achieve interoperability – in general  Standards are the basis for interoperability Gaps of interpretation anticipate interoperability BUT: standard conformity means not (necessarily) interoperability  Profiling is the framework for the use of a standard Reduction of interpretation gaps  Testing methods and guidelines for the documented evidence of interoperability Closing of interpretation gaps

10 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 The cost benefit relationship interoperability time and effort

11 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Precondition of a testing body  Vendor neutrality  Uses consistent and mature (acknowledged) testing methods  Is incorporated in a mutual recognition network

12 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 How to achieve interoperability - in public procurement  Enable public procurers to integrate „interoperability“ as criteria in public procurement processes  establish testlabs as a test environment to prove interoperability and to develop and demonstrate a transparent, standardized and robust valuation methodology  develop typical scenarios with the objective of analyzing, testing, verifying and demonstrating interoperability of selected systems in specific areas of application  Set up an information and communication portal to deliver common and specific information to stakeholders and foster the building of an interoperability-community and assure equal access to information

13 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Five basic steps of an interoperability methodology

14 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Test process  Scenario-based testing Identification of typical and relevant requirements and scenarios (Semi-)Automated test execution  Specification-based testing Extension of scenario-based tests with conformance-oriented tests Objective test specifications (TTCN-3) Fully automated test execution

15 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July Project aims Proof and publication of interoperability of between products, systems and solutions Developing actions to support the enhancement of interoperability, with a special focus on public procurement Developing and upgrading of testbeds Specifying and profiling of existing standards Developing certifiable test processes and –solutions Facilitation of an acknowledged proof Make products, systems and solutions more transparent Providing best-practice examples, experiences, instructions and publications Reduction of the lack of information Setting up a modern communication- and information platform Promoting the dialogue with interoperability-community And…

16 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 International cooperation Mutual recognition Interoperability testing events Know how transfers

17 Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Future Demands  Cloud Computing  SOA  Next Generation Networks – e.g. IPv6  ePassport, German eIdentity card  transborder cooperation – e.g. cross- border services  Internet of things – e.g. smart grid ...

Nairobi, Kenya, 30 – 31 July 2010 Thank you for your attention