EU calls for tech research splurge

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 16 Mar 2009 at 09:33

The European Commission has issued a rallying call to member nations that is intended to spur investment into research of the "future internet, web-based services and nanoelectronics."

The Commission hopes to drive this investment by bumping its own research budget from 1.1 billion euros in 2010 to 1.7 billion euros in 2013.

In return it wants EU members to match that increase at a national level: "For decades to come, ICT will underpin the competitiveness of our economy, the efficiency of our public services and our quality of life," says information society and media commissioner Viviane Reding.

"Our task is to make sure that Europe is well-equipped to harness the potential of technologies like the internet or mobile phones. This means taking concrete steps to ensure that Europe takes pole position to shape and benefit from ICT developments"

At the core of Reding's argument is the fact that while Europe represents a third of the global ICT market, "public and private investment... is less than half that of the US and the EU attracts five times less venture capital than the US. " This she blames on the fragmentation of EU-based research and development.

Reding also reiterated her desire for a new system whereby inventions are granted a single patent that applies across the European Community. The argument runs that such a system would help companies protect their investments across the EU.