Brussels, 07/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - More than 200 digital technology experts gathered in Copenhagen last week to discuss what it takes to create a well functioning Digital Single Market in Europe, as well as a recovery in growth and job creation. The conclusions were published at the end of the conference, as well as the political objectives worked out by the European ministers during their most recent Competitiveness Council last February. They will be used as guidelines to orientate the Council of Ministers' work in the future.
At the end of the conference, the experts sent out four key messages under the following headings: (1) connectivity; (2) confidence; (3) digital thinking; (4) data. With regards the first message, Europeans have to be able to go online wherever they are, at any moment and by any means, emphasise the experts. This is what is meant by “Digital Freedom”. Consumers, must, however, above all, have confidence in the online environment, which is why shopping on the web must be further monitored and protected (second message). With regard to enterprise, companies must be allowed to develop their activities on the web more and think in a “digital” way (third message). Productivity can be increased, and companies can gain new business opportunities, if they manage to use data innovatively. Access to data and its optimum use is “the driving force for European digital growth”, indicate the experts in their fourth message. Re-using information from the public sector, for example, as advocated by the European Commission would help make an additional €140 billion a year. According to the Danish minister for enterprise and growth, Ole Sohn, using digital resources to attain a more ecological environment and to make energy savings, is a perfect example. He indicated that “the potential market value on energy saving measures is estimated to be as much as € 2.6 billion in the case of Denmark alone”. He promised that during the Danish Presidency “we will advance negotiations on a revision of the directive on the re-use of public sector information as much as possible”. (IL/transl.fl)