The European Information Society in 2010

1. The European InformationSociety in 2010 Per Blixt Head of Unit “eInclusion” Copenhagen 16 September 2005 Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

2. The European InformationSociety in 2010 António Mendes dos Santos Seconded National Expert (PT) Unit “eInclusion” Copenhagen 16 September 2005 Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

3. AGENDA Policy framework: i2010 initiative Commission Communication on eAccessibility RTD activities: past, present, FUTURE Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

4. The revised Lisbon strategy Three key policy areas • Make the EU attractive for investment and work • Knowledge and innovation => ICT • More and better jobs Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

5. i2010: The link to Lisbon • Lisbon mid-term review • importance of ICT and research to achieve the knowledge society • i2010 is a self-standing initiative • contributes to the renewed Lisbon agenda • but also to the European strategy on growth and prosperity up to 2010 Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

6. ICT for growth and employment i2010 - The three i’s • Information space • Innovation and investment in research • Inclusion, better public services and quality of life Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

7. Five year goals (1) Priority 1: Information space • Delivering services anywhere, anytime over high-speed seamless networks • Promoting the availability of content • Increasing the security of networks Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

8. Five year goals (2) Priority 2: Innovation and investment in research • Promoting research in and deployment of ICT through partnerships • Identifying emerging trends • Promoting ICT innovation and adoption for competitiveness and employment in businesses Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

9. Five year goals (3) Priority 3: Inclusion, better public services and quality of life • Widening ICT access, accessibility and skills • Support ICT-enabled services of public interest in Europe • Reinforcing trust and support of ICT use • Improve quality of life Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

10. To succeed . . . • Buy-in of all stakeholders • Partnership with the Member States • Visibility through annual report • Realistic actions with measurable results • Smart indicators (quality and quantity) Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

11. i2010 in summary . . . • A holistic approach • Linked to the reviewed Lisbon strategy • Different roles for the public sector • Five year goals, annual actions • Clear results, widely communicated Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

12. Commission Communication on eAccessibility Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

13. What is eAccessibility? The aim is to overcome the technical barriers and difficulties that people at risk of exclusion (particularly people with disabilities and elderly people) experience when trying to participate on equal terms in the Information Society (IS). It is part of the broader eInclusion concept, which also addresses other types of barriers, such as financial, geographical or educational. Making the benefits of ICT available to the widest possible number of people is a social, ethical and political imperative. Furthermore, this creates markets of increasing economic significance Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

14. Practical challenges SOME EXAMPLES: • Lack of access to the 112 emergency number from text phones in many Member States; • Interference between mainstream products and assistive devices, e.g. GSM telephones and hearing aids; • Lack of European-wide standards, e.g. the seven different, incompatible text phone systems for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons; • Lack of adequate services, e.g. many websites too complicated for cognitively impaired or inexperienced users or impossible to read and navigate through for visually impaired persons; • Lack of products and services for certain groups, e.g. telephone communication for sign language users; • Physical design difficult to use, e.g. keypads and displays on many devices; • Restricted choice of electronic communication services, quality and price. Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

15. Rationale • Need to cater for groups at risk of exclusion e.g.: people with disabilities and elderly people are two large groups that together represent about 20% of the population in Europe • Accessible solutions are not emerging in the market in a sufficient and timely manner to ensure that everyone can benefit adequately from the Information Society • Technical requirements & standards needed to support legislation are currently more developed for national use in a few countries The Communication aims at promoting a consistent approach to eAccessibility initiatives in the Member States on a voluntary basis, as well as to foster industry self-regulation. Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

16. The demographic change . . . this implies a growing “eAccessibility market” Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

17. The regulatory environment • The Directive on Equal Treatment in employment and occupation • The Directive on Radio and Telecommunications Terminal equipment • The Public Procurement Directive • The Electronic Communications Framework Directive • The Directive on Universal Service • Deployment of policy is uneven and slower than expected • Market for accessible ICT goods and services is not • competitive enough • The risk of digital divide increases Coordination action by EU Member States is needed to make ICTs more accessible to all Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

18. Key Components • Public Procurement • Certification • Legislation European Public Procurement Directives allow the use of Design for All and accessibility requirements in technical specifications A Council Resolution on eAccessibility (Jan 2003) called for an “eAccessibility mark” for goods and services to be considered. Such a scheme would give manufacturers and service providers recognition for their efforts, as well as guiding user purchases. Self-declaration and third-party certification schemes will be investigated and the different options will be compared for their effectiveness Legislation demanding accessibility does already exist in some Member States (e.g.: Italy, Spain, UK) as well as in the USA. The full potential of existing legislation to enforce eAccessibility at a Europe-wide level needs to be explored. Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

19. Related ongoing activities • Develop and promote the use of harmonised European eAccessibility requirements in public procurement • Develop and foster the use of European eAccessibility standards • Promote the use and knowledge of “Design for all” methodologies by industry • Encourage and monitor Member States commitments viz. accessibility of their public web sites (following the WAI Guidelines) • Monitor progress to make well-based decisions and to encourage all Member States to address the issue following examples of good practice (STUDY to be launched last quarter 2005) • Support European Research in enabling ICT domains Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

20. Main messages • Convey to Member States the urgent need to work together towards harmonization of the solutions they demand • Encourage industry to develop accessible solutions in their products and services (mainstream accessibility!) • Demonstrate (to citizens) the active commitment of the European Commission to improve accessibility in the Information Society Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

21. RTD activities Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

22. TIDE initiative: Pilot Phase21 projects ~14 MEURO 1991 TIDE initiative: Bridge Phase55 projects ~38 MEURO 1993 4th FP - TAP : Disabled and Elderly Sector 53 projects ~50 MEURO 1996 5th FP - IST : Persons with Special Needs approx. 40 projects ~60 MEURO 1998 6th FP - IST : eInclusion start 17 projects 36 MEURO (+30) 2002 Prior Research Achievements Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

23. eInclusion projects in FP6: Call2 Results of IST Call 2 (Oct/2003) 95 submitted proposalsinvolving more than 1000 partners13 selected proposalsfor a total Community grant of 35 M€ BENtoWEB, EIAO Support-EAM Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

24. eInclusion projects in FP6: Call5 • FP6-2004-IST2005: Strategic Objective 2.5.11 eInclusion • Indicative budget allocation: 30 M€ • Large scale demonstrators • Smart environments (DGTV, 3G) • Living environments for older persons and educational environments for children, work environments for people with disabilities • Targeted research for people with cognitive disabilities • The ageing population • Children (develop new potentials and learn new skills) • Coordinated actions • Federate Assistive technology Industry • Struture cooperation among centers for eAccessibility resources (DFA-AT) http://www.cordis.lu/ist/so/einclusion/home.html Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

25. Next steps: FP7 – ICT objectives “To enable Europe to master and shape the future developments of ICT so that the demands of its society and economy are met” Thereby: • Strengthening the competitiveness of all industry in Europe • Master ICT for innovation and growth • Reinforcing the competitive position of European ICT sector • Build industrial and technology leadership • Supporting EU policies • Mobilise ICT to meet public and societal demands • Strengthening the European science & technology base • A pre-condition for success Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

26. eInclusion in FP7: Objective A fully inclusive Information Society TARGET DOMAIN • All groups at risk of exclusion from the Info Society • Groups suffering from “unequal” opportunities Increasingly address the full spectrum of the Digital Divide (e.g.: social exclusion, poverty, race, immigration, etc.) Several EXCLUSION FACTORS • Social environment (financial, educational, employment) • Geographical environment • Legislative environment (barriers to products/ services) Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

27. eInclusion in FP7: a TOOL INFORMATION SOCIETY A tool to fight social exclusion Three (complementary) approaches: • Actively use new ICTs to promote the inclusion of all • individual: independent living, social participation, employment, life-long learning… • community/societal: social capital, cohesion, democracy,…. • Ensure that (technological) evolution does not itself create new forms of social exclusion • Repair existing gaps caused by current technologies that result in the exclusion of individuals from the Information Society Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

28. FP7: eInclusion and eAccessibility Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

29. eInclusion in FP7: possible R&D actions • Understanding the Challenge • Use of ICT to provide relevant content and increase eSkills • Ensuring equal access and participation • Services and tools to foster the inclusion process • Horizontal issues Socio-technological research on the role technology can play in addressing individuals/ communities’ needs How ICT can be used to provide the content needed for improving social capital and citizenship in the democratic society Removal and prevention of technological barriers through the application of DfA methods/ tools and (new) Assistive Technologies How can ICT facilitate and support the work of professionals for training and counseling, capacity building. . . Identification of ICT policies to be used as examples of good practice; Ditto viz. areas for cooperation across MS and internationally. Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

30. Accessibility (solutions) Independent living (new solutions) Studies of user needs Access to employment (….) Technology watch Usability (solutions) Social impact assessments Social participation (….) Catering for diversity Lifelong learning (….) Methods for user involvement Affordable access Health (….) Accessibility / DfA toolkits Community access Consumption (….) Relevant content Social shaping of technology Democracy (….) Actor awareness / training User motivation and skills (basic) Avoiding new exclusions (…) Inclusive industry RTD User motivation and skills (higher) “Standards” to support eIncl. Community networks Exploit existing solutions / TT Cultural protection / development Demand side initiatives topromote access, skills, motivation, usage eInclusion in FP7: possible R&D topics Promoting inclusive Socio-technical Processes Reducing / Avoiding eExclusion Utilising ICTs for Inclusion Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

31. 2005 2003 2004 2006 2007 - 2013 Next steps: FP7 - timetable Call 5 Call 3 Call 1 Call 2 Call 6 Call 4 FP6 FP7 2007 - 2013 Communication on FP7 orientations Adoption FP7, SPs, RfPproposals FP7 Work Programmes + Calls New Financial Perspectives Communication on new financial perspectives Agreement Legislative proposals Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

32. ICT – Meeting Societal Demands Modern public services and administrations Inclusion Flexible work patterns Since 1991, circa 185 projects targeting the elderly and people with special needs. 24/7 economy Ageing population Cultural and societal diversity Copenhagen, 16th September 2005

33. THANK YOU ! Copenhagen, 16th September 2005