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Hand in Hand: Technologies and Content

The quality of digital content and services depends largely on how sophisticated the underlying technologies are. In the same way, cutting-edge communication technologies need rich content and intelligent services to be filled with life. The EU therefore actively supports both the development of innovative technologies and the creation of European content and services through a wide range of programmes and initiatives.

Overview ¦ Relevant Policies ¦ Relevant Activities ¦ Example Projects

Europe's activities in this area can be divided into two main categories:

• European Content Creation: supporting the creation of rich audiovisual and internet content, as well as tackling illegal online content and promoting the safe use of the internet.
• European Leadership in Content Technologies: helping European industry develop innovative technologies and software for supporting online content and services.

European Content Creation

Supporting Europe's Content Industry

The seven year, €755m MEDIA 2007 programme (2007-2013) strengthens Europe’s audiovisual industry by supporting the development, distribution and promotion of cinematographic works and audiovisual programmes, as well as European film festivals and the training of professionals.  MEDIA 2007's pilot projects explore the impact of rapid technological change on cinema.

The EU's Content online initiative aims to stimulate the growth of a true EU single market for online digital content, such as films, music and games. Within this initiative, the European Charter on Film Online addresses questions ranging from stimulating cooperation between the creative industries and the access suppliers, to the use of online film to promote cultural diversity.

The eContentplus Programme (2005-2008) promotes the take up of cutting-edge technical solutions to improve accessibility and usability of digital material in a multilingual environment. The programme addresses specific market areas where development has been slow, such as Public Sector Information (see also the Public Sector Information Directive), educational, cultural, scientific and scholarly content.

The Digital Libraries i2010 Flagship, finally, is making Europe's diverse cultural and scientific heritage, including audiovisual and other content, easier and more interesting to use online for work, leisure and/or study.

Tackling Illegal Online Content

Not all forms of content and services, on the other hand, need help in making the leap online - quite the opposite.

The Safer Internet Plus programme (2005–2008) therefore promotes the safer use of the Internet and other online technologies, particularly by children, and helps the EU's fight against illegal and harmful Internet content, ranging from child pornography to racism.

The programme funds, among other things, two Europe-wide networks:

• The Inhope-hotline-network allows anybody to report illegal content found on the Internet.
• Ins@fe carries out awareness actions (events, trainings) and runs websites to inform parents, children and teachers on the safe use of Internet.

Embracing Dot-eu

Since April 2006, everybody having an address within the EU can register for a .eu website or email address on the Internet. Advantages for citizens and businesses: European citizens not only enjoy a special identity in cyberspace but also get the protection provided by European laws for their rights as consumers and individuals in particular as regards privacy and personal data protection. European industries can ensure their visibility both within the single market and beyond. They will also profit from greater certainty as to the applicable law in case of conflict.

European Leadership in Content Technologies

The European Commission is in a unique position to coordinate the research, development and demonstration of innovative technologies on a European scale.

While the above-mentioned eContentplus-programme focuses on the best use of available technology, the EU's Framework research programmes (see the Research & Innovation theme for an introduction) are looking to the future, pooling Europe's resources to ensure that Europe's industries stay at the cutting edge and master these increasingly complex and expensive technologies. The Framework research programmes give direct funding to research projects while the European Investment Bank's (EIB) Innovation 2000 Initiative facilitates the access to loans for high-capacity and high-quality information and communications technology infrastructure and networks.

Within the recently launched Seventh Framework Programme (FP7, 2007-2013), most of the work has been divided into seven Challenges, of which one - Digital libraries and content - will create the technologies crucial to the development of the digital content industry. The ICT Policy Support Programme (or ICT PSP) is a component of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP). The ICT PSP aims at stimulating innovation and competitiveness through the wider uptake and best use of ICT based services by citizens, governments and businesses. One particular issue in this area is the Privacy Enhancing Technologies initiative which covers projects aimed at minimising risks such as identity theft, discriminatory profiling, continuous surveillance and fraud.

This carries on the work launched under the Sixth Research Framework Programme (FP6, 2002 – 2006), where a number of Strategic Objectives focused on digital content and services technologies. See:

• Software and Service Technologies: an essential part of the digital content and services world; NESSI, the European Technology Platform on Software and Services, includes many key players from the European IT Services industry and has produced a Strategic Research Agenda for this research area;
• Free and Open Source Software: Compatible software technologies are paramount: Researchers can profit and built on the solutions of their colleagues, users can quickly and cost-effectively adapt existing products to their personal needs and stay flexible for future developments. The EU is supporting several dozens of research projects in this area;
• Technology-enhanced learning and access to cultural heritage: see, in particular, Digital Heritage and Cultural Content (Digicult), which funds the development of intelligent systems for dynamic access to and preservation of cultural and scientific resources;
• Knowledge & Content Technologies: supporting the development of semantic-based and context-aware technologies that will provide automated solutions for knowledge representation, acquisition and management.
• Cognitive Systems: systems that can perceive, understand and interact with their environment, which includes interpreting information in the form of images, text, speech, video and more;
• Networked audiovisual systems and home platforms: networked and interactive audiovisual systems, applications and user devices, notably for broadcasting and in-home platforms;
• Interfaces: Human-computer interaction and multilingual systems: developing easy to use interfaces able to render human-machine interaction as natural, responsive and intuitive as any interaction between humans. The aim of multilingual systems is for citizens to be able to access, receive and use information in their own language.
• Research infrastructure: includes the development of Grids technologies, which offer new opportunities for the management, distribution and use of multimedia content.

Last Updated March 2007

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