The Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP) promotes actions that address the challenges European industry is facing, with a special focus on the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises. The programme has been successful in meeting its main objectives according to a recent report, which highlights several of its achievements. Building on CIP's results, its funding successor – the new Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs (COSME) - is expected to further strengthen and streamline actions in this field from 2014 onwards.