Culture in the Digital Age

Europe's rich cultural heritage and vibrant cultural industries are important assets in today's increasingly globalised and digitised world. Europe must tap these assets, help its industries evolve and ensure that all Europeans benefit.

Overview ¦ Example Projects

"We are on the verge of a whole new wave of ICTs... that will transform the way we live, do business and spend our leisure time"
- Viviane Reding, May 2006 (pdf)

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Conserving the past, developing the future
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The communications and media industries (see the Industry and especially the Content & Services theme) are among the most promising sectors in Europe's economy thanks largely to digital convergence, which grants consumers of audiovisual content unrivalled power in choosing what they want to see, and when and where they want it to see it. Europe's cultural industries - audiovisual, media, publishing, libraries, museums and more - are well placed to supply that content, but they must evolve in this rapidly changing world.

This is not just a new market opportunity for this sector, however. More compelling on line content will make completely new products and services possible, stimulating growth in the entire communications industry. And everyone wins when they can visit Europe's best museums and libraries or watch European film productions online from their living rooms and school desks.

Anytime, anyplace access to content and services, however, poses both regulatory and technical questions. Suppliers will find it impossible to deliver new services if they have to face 27 or more regulatory regimes, while the management of online rights must be improved at the European level. The right legal conditions across Europe are therefore essential to the growth of innovative products and services.

Information and communication technologies provide a whole range of opportunities for using Europe's rich cultural and scientific resources. EU-funded research (ICT programme) will contribute to improving digital libraries and digital preservation technologies. Digital libraries make cultural resources more easily accessible and open new ways for people to experience their cultural heritage, and digital preservation helps keeping the past and the present for the future. Also Europe's cultural, telecommunications and IT industries need to work together if they are to develop advanced, interoperable technologies and services. And because the Internet does not notice national boundaries, finally, harmful and illegal Internet content needs to be defined and tackled at a European and global level.

Further Details and Quicklinks

Policies
Activities
See Also

Relevant Policies

i2010: the Inclusion, better public services and quality of life pillar promotes an inclusive European Information Society, supported by efficient and user-friendly ICT enabled public services. Hence:
- The Digital Libraries i2010 Flagship: aims to make Europe's diverse cultural and scientific heritage easier and more interesting to use online;
- The Recommendation on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital preservation calls on EU Member States to set up large-scale digitisation facilities to get Europe's cultural heritage online, address copyright questions and more ...
- Audiovisual and Media Policies: overhauling Europe's television industries for a converged world, encouraging the preservation of film heritage, stimulating online content while protecting human dignity and minors, and more ...
- Digital Rights Management (DRM): DRM Systems are an important complement to the legal framework as they help manage intellectual property rights for digital content;
- These rights were set out in the Harmonisation of Copyright and Related Rights in the Information Society, adopted in 2001.
Media literacy initiative: The European Commission is formulating a media literacy policy to empower Europe's citizens in a world surrounded by multimedia messages.

Relevant Activities

Browse some relevant Example Projects or jump straight to the following sites:

Research: see the Research & Innovation theme for an introduction, or visit:
- Digital libraries and content: one of the seven main challenges for ICT research from 2007-2013;
- Digital preservation: more on research on Digital preservation
Other activities related to digital content:
- eContentplus: making digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable;
- Safer Internet: promoting safer use of online technologies, particularly by children, and fighting illegal content and content unwanted by the end-user;
- MEDIA Programme: supporting Europe's audiovisual industry, with Pilot Projects taking account of rapid technological change;
Media-related activities:
- Media Task Force: examines all Commission policies which could affect the media, and acts as a Commission entry point for media companies, organisations and citizens with media enquiries.

See Also

Other sites and documents of interest include:

See also:
- the Broadcasting theme for policies and activities focused on boosting Europe's broadcasting industry
- the Content & Services theme for policies and activities focused on stimulating the development of digital content and services;
- the Commission's membership of the European Audiovisual Observatory, which collects, prepares and distributes relevant information on the audiovisual sector in Europe
From the Culture Library:
- Factsheet 19: Stimulating Europe's Digital Content and Services Industry
- Factsheet 5: Bringing knowledge within reach
- Factsheet 61: MEDIA 2007: A big push for Europe's audiovisual industry
- Speech (7/6/2006): "Audiovisual media service directive: the right instrument to provide legal certainty for Europe’s media businesses in the next decade"
- Speech (8/12/2005): "Challenges for TV"
- Speech (16/5/2005): "European films and the Information Society"
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Last Updated March 2007