Brussels, 18/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - In its conclusions of 14 March, the European Council reminds the European Commission of its digital agenda commitments and asks it to present a report before October on the state of progress of its work, as it had announced. The Commission must identify the obstacles that still need to be overcome for a totally operational digital market to be achieved by 2015. It must also propose tangible measures aiming to implement the single market in information and communications technology as quickly as possible. European Commissioner for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes said that she would respect her commitments and before October present a series of measures for adoption. “This has the potential to make people's lives easier, make our businesses more productive, and ensure a globally competitive European telecoms sector. At a time when our economy really needs a boost, it's great to see European leaders recognising the potential of EU action”, Kroes stated.
Despite improvements in recent years - which have brought European consumers more choice as regards supply, lower prices and enhanced rights - the European telecommunications market is still not a reality but has 27 distinct national markets. This is a fragmentation that is costly, Kroes underlines. It means that there is a choice of goods and services limited to what's on offer locally, that the goods and services are subject to different regulations, and that the radio spectrum is shared differently depending on the priorities defined by the member states for their wireless operators. Resolving these issues and breaking down the barriers demands ambition but the potential gains are significant, Kroes stresses. In her opinion, completing the single digital market could bring the European economy up to €110 billion income a year - in other words, around 0.8% of GDP. “That's too good an opportunity to miss”, Kroes stated. (IL/transl.fl)