The Information Society theme in the 5th Framework Programme of EU RTD (1998-2002) is now well defined in the Commission's proposal for the Information Society Technologies (IST) Programme. This proposal attracted a high level of consensus in the Council of Research Ministers on 22nd June 1998.
In order to implement this programme on completion of the decision-making processes in late 1998, it is now urgent to develop a workprogramme in close consultation with the potential funding partners and participants in the RTD actions. This first draft is the starting point for this process. It is based on inputs received from many different quarters over the past months including workshops, seminars and a targeted call for action lines within the industrial and research community, which resulted in over 500 ideas and concrete suggestions.
It recalls the structure and focus of work as defined in Annex I to
the Specific Programme proposal (namely "The General Outlines, the Scientific
and Technological Objectives and the Priorities"). Within this setting,
it then identifies the main ideas for Action Lines to be addressed in 1999
and structures them in a way that reflects the integrated nature of the
programme and the Key Actions.
"Article 5: The Commission shall draw up a work programme, specifying:
"The work programme shall take account of relevant interests, in particular the scientific, industrial and user communities. It shall serve as a basis for implementing the indirect RTD actions according to the procedures set out in the rules for participation and dissemination", and that "The workprogramme shall be updated where appropriate".
The procedures involve Calls for Proposals published in the Official Journal. These calls are based on a Workprogramme, adopted by Decision of the Commission following a favourable opinion of the Programme Committee and in line with the Guidelines of the Advisory Group.
The IST Workprogramme will be revised each year (by November/December). It covers a subset of the Specific Programme's scientific and technological objectives, resulting from an in-depth analysis followed by rationalisation and priority setting. The priority RTD work is defined in the form of a number of objective-oriented Action Lines. Each year, the Action Lines will be reviewed: some will be removed, others revised and new ones added as the basis for the next year's Calls.
The Action Lines described in this Workprogramme are for the Calls for Proposals to be published in the calendar year 1999.
For the purposes of the Workprogramme, the Key Actions are sub-divided into Action Lines; each with clear monitorable objectives against which proposals for EU support to collaborative RTD can be evaluated.
This workprogramme reflects a further selection and focus on specific Action Lines for which there is clear added value in co-operation at EU level, and the execution of which is consistent with the budget resources for Calls for Proposals in 1999.
The Action Lines proposed for 1999 reflect both the priorities in the Specific Programme and the main ideas that have emerged from the recent consultations and analyses. They strike a balance between continuity and innovation, between providing support for the continuation of the most relevant research lines of the 4th Framework Programme and establishing new directions.
Overview
I.1 RTD Spanning Key Action I
I.2 Health
The initial focus in this field is on: advanced support systems for health professionals; on personal systems supporting health status at home, work and leisure places; and on telemedicine services and remote medical care through broadband information infrastructures. In parallel, accompanying measures should assess the implementation of existing technologies and build consensus on the work to be further undertaken.
I.3 Persons with Special Needs, including the Disabled and the Elderly
The initial focus in this field is on the tools and support systems for independent living. Improvements of design methods and techniques, building upon existing participatory design methods, will be sought.
I.4 Administrations
Much of the work supporting this area is addressed in the Action Line spanning Key Action I on "New Models for providing services to citizens". In 1999, an additional innovative focus in this field is an exploratory Action Line on increasing the participation in democratic processes. This Action Line will be further developed in the subsequent calls.
I.5 Environment
A first Action Line on "Intelligent environmental monitoring and management" will ensure continuity with relevant RTD action in the 4th Framework Programme. A second Action Line on "Environmental risk and emergency management" will focus on floods, forest fires, landslides and industrial accidents and will be addressed in conjunction with the generic research action on "Earth Observation" of Programme 4.
I.6 Transport and Tourism
The initial focus is on developments common to all modes and modal solutions for road and air transport, and on tourism and supporting information systems.
Action Line Descriptions
I.1.1 New models for providing services to citizens
Objective: To develop and analyse scenarios (including the regulatory and ethical aspects) and new models for public service provision, with appropriate mixes of on-line service, telepresence and direct human contact, and to quantify benefits in terms of wider accessibility (both geographically and to social groups), transparency, lower cost, higher quality or the availability of a wider range of services. The scope covers notably the areas of: social and health services, business support and taxation services, environment/transport, statistics and emergency services, and is expected to be validated via work in the Action Line on "Integrated applications platforms" (CPA.1) related to the re-engineering of public service provision (particularly in administrations), innovative regional development or Trans-European Networks initiatives. Where appropriate, the work should support the enlargement of the European Union and its adaptation to Economic and Monetary Union. Take up actions should include industrial co-operation to provide common validation platforms for advanced services.
I.2 Health
I.2.1 Clinical, biological and imaging support systems for health professionals
Objective: To develop innovative medical systems for prevention, non-invasive diagnosis and therapy and demonstrate benefits based on measurable indicators. These new systems will build on new generation devices based on micro- and nano-technologies, advanced medical imaging using pattern recognition, virtual reality based tools for medical diagnosis and education, and mobile and fixed secure systems for accessing health data. Work is expected to focus on technologies for integration of existing and new information systems for timely access to health data, and on innovative interfaces for improved user acceptance. The RTD work is to be complemented by actions promoting large-scale implementation and use of standardised electronic health records.
I.2.2 New generation tele-medicine services
Objective: To demonstrate by 2003 a set of new generation telemedicine services for tele-consultation, emergency, and provision of tele-care at the point of need. The work should focus on the development and validation of new technologies for telemedicine applications; including specific aspects of tele-robotics, personal digital assistants, advanced interfaces, mobile networks including satellites. Emphasis should be on interoperability with the health information infrastructure and the use of standardised protocols. RTD is expected to provide tools for distributed health care services and to support access to care 24 hours a day across borders, including for people in remote and isolated areas. The potential benefits should be demonstrated through cost-effectiveness assessments.
Objective: To develop and demonstrate affordable systems and services for personal health status support to enable citizens to take a more active role during prevention, care and rehabilitation. The focus is on personal health systems that communicate with the rest of the health information infrastructure. It will build on the development of advanced bio-sensors, transducers and microsystems, integrated with communication facilities for secure data exchange with professional networks, and interfaces with electronic health records. The results are expected to help the development of personal health services, to support the EU policy on health promotion, and to contribute to the emergence of personal health appliances and service industries.
I.3 Persons with special needs, including the disabled and the elderly
I.3.1 Systems and services for independent living
Objective: To develop and validate new tools, systems and services for personal care, mobility and communication, which will enable improved access to a wider range of care services, and greater participation in social and community activities for people with reduced mobility and impaired functions because of disability of age, including extending employment and learning opportunities. Within this Action Line, design-for-all tools and methods are to be applied to provide a focus on affordability, universality of access, adaptability and ease of personalisation. Particular improvements are needed in user modelling so that systems and user interfaces can be easily personalised to the individual, the tasks being undertaken and the environment.
I.4.1 On-line support to democratic processes (Exploratory Action)
Objective: To explore innovative consultation, access and voting systems to support increased and equal participation in democratic processes, reduce costs and increase transparency in a user-friendly way. The systems are expected to facilitate contact with elected representatives and the understanding of proceedings of democratic institutions in simple low-cost ways. They are also expected to be applicable at local, regional, national or European level; to incorporate adequate safeguards for privacy and authentication and the handling of votes; to be simple to use, accessible and affordable to all electors and candidates. The work should be relevant also for new Member States.
I.5 Environment
I.5.1 Intelligent environmental monitoring and management
Objective: To develop and demonstrate at local, urban, regional and trans-boundary level systems and tools for coherent international environment monitoring and management. The work is expected to involve integration of diverse networked information sources including, as appropriate, high-resolution remote sensing, geographic information, advanced data mining and decision support systems. It is also expected to involve development of intelligent sensors, detectors, models and networks for monitoring of slow chronic changes, as well as pollution, and the assessment of new business models for value-added environmental information services. RTD is expected to contribute to European and global standards for environmental data exchange and to the preservation of natural resources. It should also support environmental planning and early warning.
I.5.2 Environment risk and emergency management
Objective: To develop and demonstrate new tools and integrated systems for consistent emergency management, supporting the entire cycle from prevention, mitigation and post-crisis follow-up for both natural and man-made risks. The work, which is focused on floods, forest fires, landslides and industrial accidents, is expected to involve development and use of intelligent, mobile and networked sensors for real-time data collection, remote sensing, high performance vision systems combined with risk assessment models and real-time GIS. The systems should include tools for nowcasting command and control and the integration of data from low-cost satellite, fixed and mobile communication networks; they should include the provision of early warning and information to the citizen. The RTD is expected to contribute to establish and enhance European standards for generic emergency management tools, including such for industrial plant monitoring.
I.6.1 Intelligent infrastructure and mobility management
Objective: To develop intelligent infrastructures for data collection, processing, exchange and distribution in all transport modes to support traffic and demand management, collective and individual transport, and fleet and freight operations for the whole logistics chain. These objectives include the development of surveillance, positioning, traffic control, communication/reporting, telepayment and guidance systems (including GNSS-1 and 2) and the enhancement and adaptation of terrestrial and satellite communication, positioning and observation infrastructures. For surveillance, technology developments may include image processing, tracking and tracing, monitoring and sensors, and position-fixing techniques, both space- and ground-based. For processing, work should focus on the development of new traffic control systems with advanced interfaces, and simulation, prediction and decision-support tools, including systems for managing large-scale events and crises. Mobile network intelligence and open architectures, media-independent applications for mobility, terminals and personal multimedia devices should be adapted and validated for their optimal use in transport and the provision of virtual mobility services.
I.6.2 Systems for intelligent vehicles
Objective: To develop and validate on-board systems to improve the safety comfort and more efficient use of vehicles, in particular obstacle and collision avoidance, human-centred vision and alertness enhancement and impairment watch, navigation, routing, traffic and weather information, maintenance and remote vehicle diagnostics and other "info-mobility" systems. Human-machine interface development and integration and aspects related to verification procedures for their take-up are to be considered. Priority will be given to systems common to all modes of transport, the on-board system architecture, and to systems for road and air vehicles. The work is expected to contribute to industrial consensus on common standards and interface protocols as a basis for incorporation of greater intelligence into all new vehicles by 2005.
Objective: To develop new components and distributed architectures for tourism information systems supporting travellers in their own languages, offering value-added services and multimedia information on transport, accommodation, events, culture and leisure, together with booking and payment facilities. The emphasis is on the use of emerging technologies and processes enabling the personalisation and assuring the quality of information, mobile access and on maximising the marketing channels for all tourism service suppliers. The work should include benchmarking and knowledge and best-practice sharing measures.
This Key Action requires a strong interplay between the technical, economic, social and legal issues. Integrated socio-economic and technological research is therefore necessary to better guide, monitor and assess the development and impact of new technologies and particularly of the work done in this Key Action itself. Therefore it includes integrated Action Lines on socio-economic benchmarking, modelling and impact assessment, and on tools for the accumulation and transmission of corporate knowledge. The core RTD in the Key Action is structured as a number of Action Lines in each of the three areas defined in the Specific Programme. Each Action Line will include demonstration and take-up measures as well as a number of accompanying measures.
Overview
II.1 RTD Spanning Key Action II
This work focuses on "enabling, validating and demonstrating competitive, flexible and human-centred work methods and organisation". It addresses "the needs of workers, enterprises and consumers alike". "Best-practice pilots and scalable demonstrations, together with dissemination actions" and integrated socio-economic research are major features of the work.
II.3 Management Systems for Suppliers and Consumers
This work focuses on "seamless end-to-end support, covering both tangible and intangible products, for electronic trading and distributed virtual enterprises and marketplaces". It covers "the full value chain and the information society technologies needed to support them".
II.4 Information and Network Security and Other Confidence Building Technologies
This work focuses on "technologies to boost trust and confidence in the information infrastructure, and in its services and information resources".
The calls for 1999 are proposed in the most urgent areas for EU action: in the areas of authentication and identification, privacy enhancement, and of secure electronic payment, which are related to ongoing policy development at EU level; and on IPR management, for which follow-up to existing activities is urgently required.
Action Line Descriptions
II.1 RTD Spanning Key Action II
II.1.1 New perspectives for work and business
Objective: To develop, qualify and validate evolution scenarios and the potential social and economic impacts of new technologies and services on work and business in the next decade. Work is to be based on benchmarking, econometric models, new statistical indicators and technology foresight, to guide RTD and inform policy development. Work should actively engage socio-economic and research and development in the technology development and pilot projects to aid in technology shaping. Particular emphasis will be placed on economic growth, employment, social inclusion, health and safety and new skills requirements. Attention should also be given to entrepreneurship, equal opportunities, adaptability and to legal and policy issues related to networked organisational structures such as virtual enterprises for example with respect to liability and IPR protection in a global regulatory framework. Activities should include measures to raise public awareness and support the policy debate.
II.1.2 Corporate knowledge management
Objective: To develop and validate tools for representing, capturing, accumulating and transferring organisational knowledge in working environments. The focus is on increasing individual and organisational adaptability and accelerating learning from experience distributed in networked organisations and improving feedback loops. This should include the intangible corporate knowledge about relationships and business/organisation practices as well as more formalised knowledge and skills. The goal is to demonstrate tools and best practice supporting the variety of work and learning cultures in the EU, including for under 25 first-time employees. The work should involve multi-disciplinary research, technology development and integration and trials in real work situation, which should serve as showcases for best practice.
II.2 Flexible, Mobile and Remote Working Methods and Tools
II.2.1 Workplace design
Objective: To develop, integrate and evaluate innovative workplace technologies and concepts in a variety of work situations, including mobility and dynamic roles, to create more effective and user-friendly work environments. The focus is on the research into and integration of leading-edge technologies and tools for multi-sensory communication, information access and analysis, including for example augmented reality tools and wearables, and for individual and team creativity, giving due consideration to usability, health and safety, gender issues and the quality of working life. The work should involve multi-disciplinary research, technology development and integration and trials in real work situations, which should serve as showcases for best practice workplace design.
II.2.2 Shared spaces for collaborative work
Objective: To develop and validate reference models, technologies, architectures, systems and tools that enable teams to work together across different, possibly mobile, locations and different time zones. These systems should allow sharing and managing information both real-time and asynchronously, supported by appropriate models, simulations and analytical tools. The work is should involve the linking and integration of heterogeneous workplaces, and to support both intra-company as well as inter-organisational working.
II.2.3 Dynamic networked organisations
Objective: To develop models, and validate tools and systems for dynamic networked and virtual organisations, facilitating co-operation and the inter-operation of business processes and the management of large scale and complex business operations. The work is expected to include benchmarking and evaluation of networked organisation models and the development of tools and systems for modelling co-operative planning and scheduling of resources. Work should specifically address the needs of European SMEs as participants in global business networks and their infrastructure requirements, and on new business development. It is expected to contribute to business-led consensus building, for example on codes of practice, the legal framework and interoperability, including in the Global Business Dialogue, and to world-best showcases of new business practice.
II.3 Management Systems for Suppliers and Consumers
II.3.1 Digital design and life-cycle management for products and services
Objective: To develop and validate models, systems and tools enabling products and services to be designed and developed digitally and for life-cycle management, including environmental impact minimisation at the design stage. The focus is on digital prototyping, simulation and virtual reality support for distributed design, including requirements capture, development, production, distribution and maintenance, including upgrading. Work is expected to involve interaction between suppliers, products in use, and customers to maximise value, minimise environmental cost, and facilitate enhancement and re-use.
II.3.2 New market mediation systems
Objective: To develop innovative marketplace concepts and technologies as well as to pilot and assess various architectures and tools for virtual marketplaces and business communities, including mediation systems and tools for brokerage, to enable new business models, new types of trade and trade in new types of services. The work covers emerging technologies for billing, payment, VAT collection, interactions with administrations, negotiation and brokerage and mediation and should reflect European diversity in business organisation and networking, financial services.
II.3.3 Enhanced consumer-supplier relationships
Objective: To develop and validate systems and services, and to pilot showcases to enable a balanced long-term relationship to be established between customers and a range of suppliers of goods and services. The focus is on: empowering customers as partners in the life-cycle management of goods and services, to facilitate upgrades, maintenance, repair (particularly under guarantees), trading, customer feedback and personalisation; the management of personal information and preferences, including enhanced customer influence on the provision of product and service information to them; and consumer protection. The work should contribute to consensus on interoperability and self-regulation, enabling the tools to be accessible in all Member States and able to interface with a wide range of suppliers.
II.4 Information and Network Security and Other Confidence Building Technologies
II.4.1 Identification and authentication
Objective: To develop and validate architectures, protocols, technologies, tools, systems and services, including the use of third-party services, allowing for a diversity of approaches to trust management, to allow identification and authentication of information in inter-business, retail and personal relationships, and to prevent unauthorised collection, recording and disclosure of data. Work is expected to enable equitable multi-role personal identification with adequate privacy-enhancing features under an individual's control. Emphasis is placed on achieving international compatibility and interoperability, scalability and reconfigurability, to enable increased, flexible trans-border work, trade and collaboration.
II.4.2 Secure electronic financial transactions
Objective: To develop and validate interoperable systems for secure electronic financial transactions, notably for use in the global marketplace and supporting the EURO, applicable in business-to-business, retail and transactions with public administrations. The work is expected to cover billing, payment, accounting and record keeping, as well as anonymous, small and micro payments. The focus is on scalability and interoperability between systems and on risk-management. The work is expected to include high-reliability and tamper-proof component development, including innovative smart-card and personal token systems.
II.4.3 Digital object transfer
Objective: To develop, validate and pilot the components, architectures, tools, systems and services to support the transfer of digital objects and their management as assets. The focus is on providing best practice examples and validating business models on a large scale, which apply European strengths in innovative technologies and systems with a view to promoting widespread take-up amongst businesses. Attention should be given to global consensus on interoperable electronics rights management systems, social, cultural, economic and legal impact assessment, and experimenting with advanced technologies for digital object rights and usage identification, including anonymity support and their integration into new business models.
The approach is content-centric, bringing together Europe's technology developers with content creators to support the cost-effective creation, handling and delivery of attractive, personalised and multilingual multimedia content, and for the effective exploitation and management of information. The approach is also user-driven, emphasising the increasing role of the user in innovative content and knowledge-based applications.
The architecture of Action Lines within the Key Action is based on three elements: an integrating line on socio-economic research; application-oriented lines within specific fields; and generic underpinning technology development lines.
Overview
III.1 RTD Spanning Key Action III
The initial focus is on benchmarking the emergence of new socio-economic and business aspects in the European content, creative and information industries and in education and training.
The initial focus in this field is on facilitating content creation for a variety of new publication forms; on enabling personalised access to multi-owner collections; and on stimulating developments related to cultural heritage content.
Electronic publishing:
III.3 Education and Training
In this field, the first Action Lines have been defined to complement ongoing, actions, already launched in the context of the 4th Framework Programme while providing a firm foundation for a new focus on the European RTD needed in the domain.
III.4 Human Language Technologies
The initial focus is on embedding spoken and written language into information and communication systems, through:
III.5 Information Access, Filtering, Analysis and Handling
The initial focus is on new forms of content and new standards for content identification.
Action Line Descriptions
III.1 RTD Spanning Key Action III
III.1.1 Social and business models for multimedia content
Objective: To identify the key social, economic, organisational and behavioural changes stimulated by the widespread introduction of new IST in the content, creative and information industries as well as the education and cultural sectors. To quantify the current and potential future impact on growth and employment, on education and training approaches, on linguistic and cultural diversity, on our cultural/knowledge heritage. This should include new metrics and quality control criteria for valuing information assets, new business models for multimedia content services and disintermediated communication, effective use and management of information, as well as the identification of key areas for new business and trade development.
III.2 Interactive publishing, digital content and cultural heritage
III.2.1 Authoring and design systems
Objective: To promote more creativity and better design of European multimedia content in key application areas (knowledge, business and lifestyle publishing). To improve multimedia authoring and design systems for handling radically new combinations of highly visual and interactive media forms, including 3-D, virtual reality, and broadband content. Expected benefits to be demonstrated include greater usability, functionality and productivity, as well as cross-media integration and new multi-platform publishing and broadcast applications. New production processes and systems, new work flow procedures like real-time tele-collaboration and new applications should be validated, with the active involvement of all actors concerned from production to distribution and use.
III.2.2 Content management and personalisation
Objective: To validate and demonstrate access, delivery and personalisation of heterogeneous assets in large distributed, and multi-owner collections in key application areas (knowledge, business and lifestyle publishing). This includes the development and integration of automated content packaging and presentation systems, Web-based services, unified interfaces across different information resources, new business models and dynamic transaction systems between collaborating content owners. The work is expected to contribute to open standards for interoperability and access management guidelines, including for consumer protection and privacy.
III.2.3 Access to scientific and cultural heritage
Objective: To improve access by citizens and professionals to Europe's fast-growing science and culture knowledge base, through developing advanced functionalities and systems for large-scale distributed collections of cultural and scientific multi-media resources. The technological focus is on rich representations of the resources, powerful immersive features such as 3-D visualisation, real-time object manipulation and group interactivity, whether for multimedia retrieval, virtual galleries, mass media events or audio-visual distribution. Work is expected to develop new mixed-economy models for exploitation, repackaging and re-use. Work should also address interoperable access to distributed resources, whether through cross-domain resource discovery, interfaces or new architectures and related standards.
III.2.4 Digital preservation of cultural heritage
Objective: To address new ways of representing and managing different kinds of digital cultural objects from different media sources, with special attention given to surrogates of fragile physical objects. The work should focus on the sustainable development of valuable digital repositories in Europe's libraries, museums and archives. It should address the technical and organisational problems surrounding the viability of scaleable digital repositories, e.g. through testbed creation for: long-term preservation; managing content in distributed heterogeneous collections (e.g. provenance, authenticity, identification and links). Particular attention should be paid to the issue of long-term accessibility and to affordability and acceptability factors.
III.3.1 Open platforms and tools for individualised learning
Objective: To enable an education and training centre, company or service provider, to implement and maintain integrated learning systems. The RTD should address the development of re-usable components and a suite of modular building blocks and tools on the basis of an underlying open infrastructure supporting a wide range of flexible learning activities. This should encompass all functionality needed to develop, manage and deliver courses and benefits should be sought in terms of cost-effectiveness, learning gains, quality of service and scalability. The learning support tools should be based on sound pedagogical models and implement current best practices in the domain. The work is expected to be validated in more than one learning setting and specific discipline. It should contribute to on-going standardisation activities in open learning architecture and learning objects re-usability.
III.3.2 The flexible university
Objective: To integrate and demonstrate emerging technologies for the flexible university of the future, emphasising the EU dimension and providing advanced facilities to enable students to follow a personalised mix of courses, and to interact with teachers and each other in new ways. The work should promote higher-quality re-useable learning material; greater choice for students; more consistent quality-management and cheaper on-line access to university education. To facilitate EU-wide implementation, the research should also address university teaching re-engineering, social and pedagogic requirements and cost-benefits. The work should help to set technical and operational standards and to stimulate academic-industry links.
III.3.3 Advanced training systems
Objective: To develop and validate radically new approaches for improving the future training and re-training of the work force and citizens in general, building on new cognitive approaches enabled by emerging technologies. The RTD should cover intelligent, adaptable learning environments and new multimedia content supporting the processes applied in real training situations. It should address equally the experimentation of the use of corporate knowledge networks enabling on-the-job training of employees. The focus will be on the application of simulation and animation, 3-D visualisation, immersive virtual reality and virtual presence for collaborative learning, group interaction and personal tutoring and evaluation. The work is expected to provide evidence of improved learning processes and associated benefits, for just-in-time training and lifelong learning in general, for individuals and corporations.
III.4 Human language technologies
III.4.1 Multilinguality in digital content and services
Objective: To develop and demonstrate multilanguage tools and processes for tele-business, distributed corporate knowledge management, and online information services, enabling individuals and workgroups to produce, handle, retrieve and communicate information in the languages of their choice. The scope includes powerful language analysis, transfer and generation tools, including on-line translation and summarisation aids; technology support for content localisation and software internationalisation; and language-sensitive search and presentation agents for text, speech and metadata. The work covers multilingual language resources in standard formats and should assess different take-up approaches, including the transfer of promising technologies to a broader range of languages.
Objective: To develop and demonstrate systems to enhance the naturalness of human-computer interaction through more cognitive, intuitive interfaces, whether monolingual, multilingual or multi-modal. The work should integrate robust and scaleable language technologies into highly interactive systems, in different application areas. The work encompass linguistically unconstrained human-machine dialogue, command and navigation capabilities, and will address systems which understand messages embodied in speech, language and other related communicative acts including gesture recognition. It covers harmonised repositories of language and domain knowledge, as well as techniques for modelling user behaviour and acquiring task and application specific knowledge.
III.5 Information access, filtering, analysis and handling
III.5.1 Multi-sensory forms of content
Objective: To develop and evaluate architectures, models, tools and access methods for multi-sensory content. The work should focus on enhancements to 3-D, virtual objects, hybrid (real-world and synthetic) objects, object-based content, intuitive interface development, and immersive animated content. It is expected to capitalise on European strengths in design, cultural diversity and audio-visual production creativity. It should include the integration of new forms of content with novel delivery mechanisms in new media.
III.5.2 Media representation and access: new models and standards
Objective: To develop new coding and indexing technologies and to achieve wide industrial consensus on coding standards for next generation visual, auditory, 3-D and multi-sensory media and associated metadata, allowing search and retrieval by content characteristics. The work should focus on modularly exploitable and combinable generic components and should help to ease information access by focussing on multimedia content characteristics other than text based descriptors. It should demonstrate and validate emerging standards in public exhibitions and in the provision of experimental rich-content products and services.
Overview
IV.1 RTD Spanning Key Action IV
This work focuses on "the development and convergence of information processing, telecommunications and broadcast network and system technologies".
This work is "centred around the development, deployment, operation and evolution of software-intensive systems embedded in goods and services as well as facilitating production and enterprise processes". Take-up actions, in particular best-practice initiatives form a central part of the work.
This work addresses "the development and integration of advanced simulation and visualisation technologies and environments in all applications".
The work focuses on "the move to an integrated seamless network that ensures global personal connectivity and enables access to broadband wireless multimedia communications and services by anyone, from anywhere, at any time". The work will be driven by advanced re-configurable radio concepts, extending from the terminal to the network, and permeating terrestrial, satellite, fixed and wireless.
This work addresses "the provision of intuitive ways to capture, deliver and interact with systems". It includes "the development and integration of advanced sensor, actuator and display technologies".
This work takes a "systems driven approach" to the "materials, equipment, processes, design and test methodologies and tools which enable the development of electronic components, their packaging, interconnection and application". Take-up actions, in particular assessments, first-user actions and best-practice initiatives form a central part of the work.
IV.1 RTD Spanning Key Action IV
IV.1.1 Convergence and integration: scenarios and analyses
Objective: To assess the social, economic and regulatory implications of both the convergence of communications, broadcasting, and distributed information access and information processing and their integration in home, office, mobile and non-traditional environments. This work is expected to inform policy development, drawing on scenario analysis and experience from integrated field demonstrations. To identify open interfaces, standards and codes of practice to support access to and the inter-working and inter-management of different infrastructures and services (hardware and software).
IV.2 Technologies for management of information processing, communications and networks, including broadband, together with their implementation, interoperability and application
IV.2.1 Concurrent systems
Objective: To develop and assess models, technologies and tools for the seamless and ubiquitous sharing and interactive use of applications and resources in geographically dispersed locations, in the context of heterogeneous hardware, software and communications architectures and systems, and covering both the execution and development environments. The focus will be on both development and execution environments to support distributed applications. The scope includes multi-tier architectures and middleware for interoperability, for interactive access to concurrently shared applications and services and for the cost-effective pooling of local- or wide-area-networked systems to build scalable application serving infrastructures.
IV.2.2 Real-time systems
Objective: To develop technologies and tools supporting the design and implementation of data- and/or compute-intensive real-time applications, such as online high-volume information handling, including data acquisition and control systems, and signal or image processing, including innovative approaches to signal representation and coding. This covers both consumer and professional applications. For consumer applications the focus is on cost-effective, mass-market embedded systems built by the integration of off-the-shelf hardware and software components. For professional systems the focus is on performance and mastering complexity, including behaviour-based, modular and flexible systems with built-in self-learning and self-repairing capabilities.
IV.2.3 Network integration, interoperability and interworking
Objective: To develop the next generation network technologies (including switches, routers, modems and access devices), with the associated protocols and signalling mechanisms, in order to enable integration at the transport level of multiple heterogeneous networks, and component and system interoperability. To develop new service independent architectures and systems to ensure all users have affordable access to nomadic multimedia services and service providers can easily incorporate new resources and users. The scope includes networks that will support advanced generic services with end-to-end Quality of Service, running over fibre, copper cable, radio, powerlines and broadcast channels. The work should ensure the interworking of core networks with local networks (mobile and fixed) and interoperability across the Internet, wide area, metropolitan area, local area and home networks.
IV.2.4 Technologies for network management and service-level interworking
Objective: To develop and validate technologies to support network interworking at the management and service platform levels, to increase intelligence, capacity, flexibility and functionality. The work includes methodologies and tools capable of managing the increased network complexity and supporting the introduction of new intelligent services. The target is to develop new open network management and service architectures, providing a framework for the convergence of network and broadcast services and technologies in multi-domain environments. The focus will be to provide anywhere, anytime communication supporting broadband and nomadic services. Open interfaces, common standards and codes of practice are to be developed.
IV.2.5 All-optical and terabit networks
Objective: To develop and demonstrate technologies and architectures for all-optical networks, which will allow end-to-end optical transmission across core and access networks, with transparent conversion of information between the optical and electrical domains. To exploit advances in optical signal processing, dense wavelength multiplexing, switching and routing, operation and management which support terabit capacity and beyond in the core network. The focus is on development of common design rules, interfaces and component specifications. The aim is to validate in field demonstrations the technology for scalable, high capacity optical networks, and optical packet network nodes providing orders of magnitude enhancement of current network performance.
IV.3 Technologies and engineering for software, systems and services
IV.3.1 Component-based software engineering
Objective: To develop and validate the innovative processes, methods and tools necessary to design, implement and manage software-intensive systems using a component-based approach. The focus is on re-use, the incorporation of COTS components and evolutionary re-configuration. The work should result in the definition of processes, methods and their supporting technologies that enable the smooth and auditable integration of components from multiple independent sources into complex systems and services, possibly taking advantage of the "system families" concepts. This work is to be complemented by technology-transfer and best-practice initiatives to stimulate both real-life practice improvement and the take-up of the associated technologies.
IV.3.2 Engineering of intelligent services
Objective: To develop and validate processes, open distributed architectures, methods, components and tools that support service development and also enable users to dynamically create their own personalised services. The scope includes the development of basic service building blocks covering all aspects of service provision and the creation, development, provision, composition and management of innovative and intelligent services across heterogeneous platforms and networks through the integration of service components. The emphasis is on the support of service negotiation, trading, quality assurance and management. Work is to be complemented by take-up actions.
IV.3.3 Methods and tools for intelligence and knowledge sharing
Objective: To achieve new capabilities, representation paradigms, models and tools to master complex and multi-disciplinary data and information (of enormously varying scales) and to support their transformation into "re-usable", sharable and exploitable enterprise-wide or domain-wide knowledge ontologies. The work is expected to involve developing knowledge-level methods and tools to increase the usability, capability and intelligence of applications, systems and networks. Emphasis is placed on creating knowledge mediation methods, processes and tools that could support, at various levels of abstraction, wide re-use and sharing of reasoning and knowledge level ontologies. The scope includes behaviour-based, learning and self-organising systems.
IV.3.4 Information management methods
Objective: To develop and validate advanced information management methods and tools for very large-scale (e.g. beyond the terabyte volume), co-operative, information repositories. The work is intended to form a bridge between multimedia content applications and the enabling technologies, generic systems and open architectures. It should specifically cover techniques for the storage and management of information in higher orders of magnitude than presently widely available and advanced search and retrieval based on novel processing techniques, taking into account the likely distributed and heterogeneous nature of such repositories.
IV.4 Real-time and large-scale simulation and visualisation technologies
IV.4.1 Real-time simulation and visualisation technologies
Objective: To develop and demonstrate large-scale and/or real-time distributed simulation and visualisation systems for design, to support control and business processes, for training and general-interest applications. The work covers basic modules and tools, as well as integrated environments and bridging technologies. Support to multi-scale multi-physics simulations, interoperability and re-usability of software components on heterogeneous distributed systems, and support for collaborative work are particular priorities. In addition to demonstrations and assessments, complementary work is expected to include both first-user and best-practice actions.
IV.4.2 Large scale shared virtual and augmented environments
Objective: To develop and demonstrate models, languages and technologies for shared virtual and augmented environments and to explore human interaction in them, for both professional and consumer uses. The scope includes multi-sensory interaction within both reality-based and non-real virtual and augmented environments and their seamless integration with audio-visual representation and coding techniques. It covers new and improved virtual-reality modelling languages, virtual-presence concepts such as telepresence, avatars and autonomous agents, scalability and interoperability over distributed heterogeneous platforms and networks, and reducing the cost of access. The technological work should be complemented by large-scale demonstrators of new applications and by social and psychological research addressing both novice and experienced users.
IV.5 Mobile and personal communications and systems
IV.5.1 Re-configurable radio systems & networks
Objective: To lay the foundations for allowing the radio network, including terminals and base stations, to adaptively/automatically adjust to traffic and user requirements. Architectures enabling the user to transparently access customised services over heterogeneous (terrestrial and satellite) networks operating across different frequency bands are to be developed and validated. Particular emphasis will be placed on the design and development of advanced re-configurable terminals and base stations, as well as on the appropriate download mechanisms.
IV.5.2 Terrestrial wireless systems and networks
Objective: To investigate, develop, test and validate advanced terrestrial wireless systems and architectures and their interworking and interoperation in particular with fixed/broadcasting networks. The range spans broadband wireless access and distribution systems, but also backbone wireless alternatives supporting interactive (quasi) real-time and bandwidth-on-demand services. It covers network planning, resource management techniques, flow control, signalling, quality of service focusing on managing complexity and on wireless-optimised protocols, security, intelligent roaming and handover schemes, and user/service profiling, notably for integrated communication and navigation/positioning systems.
IV.5.3 Integrated satellite systems and services
Objective: To develop, trial and validate novel technologies, architectures and innovative broadband services in the context of satellite-based communication systems, capable of providing access to low or high mobility users and inter-working with other infrastructures. The work ranges from technology developments to architectures and services trials and validations exploiting new spectrum frontiers. It covers spectrum/power efficient access schemes, support of packet-based services, integration of satellite and terrestrial networks, global network management, seamless service provision, and the integration of navigation and communication systems and services.
IV.5.4 Tools and technologies for wireless communications
Objective: To investigate, develop, integrate and validate the innovative tools and wireless technologies that are necessary to facilitate a mass-market take-up of diversified wireless terminals, networks, services and applications, while maximising spectral efficiency and allowing in particular for the exploration of new spectrum frontiers. Such tools and technologies will address the needs of wireless terrestrial and satellite systems and networks operating in a broad range of frequencies. Particular emphasis is placed on the integration of such technologies in next generation broadband systems and networks, from cellular to broadband fixed radio access and broadband wireless local area networks.
IV.6 Interfaces making use of the various senses
IV.6.1 Adaptable multi-sensory interfaces
Objective: To demonstrate adaptable multi-modal/multi-sensory interfaces by the development of systems integrating combinations of advanced displays, sensors and actuators, including the development of new technologies to support and improve the personalisation and usability of information systems and appliances and portable and/or wearable systems through new interaction paradigms. The scope includes both individual and group interaction, image and auditory scene processing, understanding and synthesis and communication functionalities for networked appliances to provide new solutions for consumer and professional environments, including "noisy" industrial environments. The approach should aim at affordability, ease of use and accessibility.
IV.7 Peripherals, sub-systems and microsystems
IV.7.1 Peripherals technologies
Objective: To develop and demonstrate advanced technologies for mass-storage, including technologies for low-power, portable and harsh environment applications.
IV.7.2 Subsystems technologies
Objective: To develop technologies for the design, manufacturing and test of multi-component assemblies comprising active and passive elements, that constitute the functional blocks of information processing and communications systems and networks. The scope covers advanced interconnection, including opto-electronic interconnection, and packaging technologies including materials, processes and equipment together with work on system partitioning methodologies and test techniques. The emphasis will be on low-cost approaches to minimal packages and direct attachment and high-density interconnection substrates. The scope includes the assessment of advanced equipment for the manufacture of electronics subsystems, encapsulation and attachment of semiconductor devices, and services to facilitate the access of users to advanced subsystem integration technologies.
IV.7.3 Microsystems
Objective: To develop and validate multi-function intelligent microsystems. The work has a strong application focus and encompasses all industrial sectors. It covers research and development to enhance the manufacturing and technology base, design tools, methods and test, packaging, assembly and integration, and includes applications experiments. It also covers the assessment of advanced prototype equipment. Emphasis will be placed on facilitating broader application, including the provision of access to prototyping and small-volume manufacture, design and customer support services, research and development support networks and first-user actions.
IV.8 Microelectronics
IV.8.1 Microelectronics and opto-electronics design
Objective: To develop advanced circuit and system design and test methodologies and support tools, with a particular focus on low-power, mixed-signal and RF circuits, hardware/software co-design and re-usable embeddable functional blocks implementing a systems-oriented approach. The scope includes complementary actions providing best-practice initiatives for circuit and system design and access to advanced microelectronics and opto-electronics technologies for prototyping and small-volume manufacture, to CAD tools for learning and first-users, and to advanced CAD tool support infrastructures for researchers.
IV.8.2. Application competences
Objective: To validate, improve and/or adapt micro-electronics and opto-electronics technologies for application-specific requirements by promoting an early involvement of users and suppliers in the integration of advanced technologies, with an emphasis on the themes of portability, endurance and real-time systems. The scope includes a first-user action for stimulating industrial enterprises to incorporate micro-electronic or opto-electronic technologies into their products.
IV.8.3 Processes, equipment and materials
Objective: To develop CMOS process modules, equipment and materials, including optical lithography down to 0.1 micron and below, interconnect schemes for 0.15 micron and below, and related advanced process options. The scope includes actions on the assessment of advanced prototype equipment for the manufacture of semiconductor components.
IV.8.4 Advanced opto-electronics and microelectronics
Objective: To develop advanced solid-state light sources and detectors together with low-cost opto-electronic devices, modules and associated materials for high speed routing, processing and storage. The scope includes complementary actions providing access to advanced microelectronics technologies for researchers, and research on semiconductor technologies making use of advanced materials, such as SiGe and SiC and alternative approaches to bulk silicone such as SOI. Also covered is research aimed at determining the industrial feasibility and impact of novel devices, processes and materials, including non-optical lithography, that could impact markets within a 5 to 10 year period.
The open domain ensures a seamless coverage of all information society technologies by keeping the door open to any new idea, with a potential for industrial or societal impact, in a bottom-up fashion. A single call, published in 1999, will be open throughout the duration of the programme.
The proactive initiatives have as objective the focusing of resources on a few key emerging visionary and challenging long-term goals. The selection of Action Lines for proactive initiatives will be based on their potential for long-term industrial and societal impact and their timeliness. Each initiative consists of a set of autonomous but closely interacting and appropriately networked projects that co-ordinate their research, reinforced with some shared research facilities when these provide economies of scale.
In addition to the open domain, proactive initiatives will be identified as priorities for 1999 from the following list of candidates.
Action Line Descriptions
Open Domain
FET.O Open domain
Objective: To support the bottom-up emergence of novel research ideas. Open domain proposals fall into two categories. In the first category the element of risk associated with the work needs to be quantified or reduced through an assessment or evaluation. In this case the project may include an evaluation phase, normally of a one-year maximum duration and funded with a fixed amount. It is expected that only a small number of such projects will continue as full-scale projects. The second category is those proposals where no such evaluation phase is envisaged, or a previous stand-alone evaluation phase was successfully undertaken. This Action Line includes HFSP.
FET.P Proactive Initiatives
FET.P.1 Quantum computing and communications
Objective: To develop novel systems and techniques for information processing, transmission and security by exploiting the properties of quantum physics. Work should consist of a balance of experimental and theoretical research, and should bring together cross-disciplinary expertise in physics, computer science, technology and potential applications. The scope covers topics such as the development of quantum logic gates, error correction, algorithms for solving problems through quantum parallelism, multi-photon quantum optics, quantum information networks, photonic quantum communication over long distances and with high data rates, and the development of practical quantum cryptography.
FET.P.2 The disappearing computer
Objective: To "make the computer disappear" by broadening the channel between people and information (stored information or other people) into a quasi-continuum of intuitive forms of interaction, in which the interface is "everywhere" and the computer explicitly "nowhere". The starting point of the "computer-less world" would be human cognition and behavior. New concepts and paradigms should be explored using a human-centered focus for R&D on multi-modal interaction, the distribution of intelligence, every day companion-devices, interactive artifacts etc. The object is to move towards a living information space in ways that support people in their everyday environment whilst fostering a new form of knowledge-sharing community.
FET.P.3 Advanced algorithms for computing and communications
Objective: To go beyond frontiers of current fundamental systems performance and functionality by applying advanced mathematics and new algorithms in the development of computing and communication systems, techniques and tools. The focus is on the most significant areas such as: information theory for new source and channel coding, secure representation and communication of information, advanced signal processing (including non-gaussian, non-stationary, non-linear, non-continuous signal processing), and applied mathematics (including operations research and advanced statistical methods).
FET.P.4 Personal bio-information systems
Objectives: To conceive and develop novel integrated systems that extend the human senses or improve health and the quality of life. The systems should be wearable or implantable, adaptable, and should have "direct" body interfaces that do not always use the five senses. Such interfaces could be implemented, for example, through the measurement of physiological, chemical, and electrical parameters, electromagnetic fields, or be made directly to the nervous system, with conscious control where necessary or desirable.
FET.P.5 Universal information ecosystems
Objective: In a context where more and more people and organisations communicate, co-operate, and trade with each other, to explore means of creating an "universal information ecosystem" in which every single "knowledge entity" (whether a person, organisation or entity acting on their behalf) can be globally, yet selectively, aware of the opportunities afforded by all others at any point in time. In such an ecosystem, every "knowledge entity" is capable of identifying those most appropriate to collaborate with (if any) and the most effective ways in which to do so. This includes the dynamic establishment of new organisational structures. This initiative will explore novel scenarios, techniques and environments, and combine experimental and theoretical research, bringing together interdisciplinary expertise in networking technologies, distributed systems, software engineering, computational logic, artificial intelligence, human computer interaction, as well as economics, organisational theory and social sciences in general.
FET.P.6 Nanotechnology information devices
Objective: To develop novel systems and devices leading to radically new alternatives for information processing and storage, with strong expected advantages compared to ultimate silicon technology in terms of power consumption, speed, storage, capacity, cost or functionality, and techniques for the fabrication of structures with critical dimensions below 100 nm. A better scientific understanding of nano-scale physical, chemical, and biological phenomena and behaviour is key to provide motivation for alternative approaches to nano-fabrication and to information processing hardware. Practical applications could include novel information processing elements operating at the atomic scale, as well as bottom-up nano-fabrication through self-organisation and self-assembly.
The second is to support the provision of experimental interconnection of testbeds for "the integration of leading edge collaborative research and development, demonstration, and take-up activities form all key actions in this programme".
The shared-cost RTD and accompanying measures supporting the provision and use of testbeds for advanced networking and application experiments will be integrated in a second Action Line.
RN.1 Broadband interconnection of national research, education and training networks, and testbeds
Objective: To procure and manage state-of-the-art trans-European broadband interconnections for national research, education and training networks, matching the aggregated need of Europe's academic and industrial researchers and the nationally available services. This implies upgrading existing capacities to up to gigabits/s, introducing support for different levels of 'Quality of Service' and improving connectivity to third countries, and includes monitoring the usage of and establishing the user requirements for such services. To procure and manage advanced testbeds and trans-European experimental communications links to support IST project experimentation.
RN.2 Testbeds for advanced networking and application experiments
Objective: To support the use of advanced testbeds for IST RTD project experimentation for validating next generation communications and networking and applications and services integrating high-performance computing and communication, including "virtual laboratories" and "virtual institutes". The actions are also expected to: address future computing and communication needs of researchers; to improve the take-up of world-best functionalities and systems in European centres of excellence; and to accelerate the formulation, validation and adoption of open interfaces, common standards and codes of practice by manufacturers, network operators, service providers and users.
Cross-programme actions, in which the Action Line itself is of a cross-programme nature, are the strongest integrating mechanism, and their scope is very tightly defined to complement the structure provided by the Key Actions. For such themes, a single Action Line allows proposers the flexibility to address multi-disciplinary and multi-purpose RTD related to more than one Key Action in a coherent way. The projects arising from these Action Lines will be fully integrated with the most relevant Key Actions, as well as forming a coherent cluster themselves.
For other themes, co-ordination and coherence can be assured by cross-programme clustering and concertation activities and associated support measures. This will be based on regular information exchange and dialogue between projects in different Key Actions. One way in which this will be facilitated is by keeping clusters of Action Lines together in calls for proposals, proposal evaluation and selection, as well as in project negotiation and management. Accompanying measures may be used to support the clustering and concertation themes.
Five themes are identified for cross-programme actions.
CPA Cross-programme Actions
CPA.1 Integrated applications platforms
Objective: To develop tools and integrate synergetic bundles of services in a coherent way in specific regions and cities to demonstrate and quantify their added value to citizens. These actions will be expected to integrate systems and services from all four Key Actions, and to serve as showcases for the information society in Europe. Special emphasis will be given to innovative integration paradigms and the useful complementarity between services in a bundle. The integrated application sites will be expected to be complementary, interconnected and also a focus for national or regional information society development.
CPA.2 New indicators and statistical methods
Objective: To develop and demonstrate new methods and tools for the collection, interchange and fusion of statistical data, for establishing quality assurance, for processing and analysis, including knowledge extraction and statistical modelling, for information dissemination and user-friendly presentation, in particular via the Internet, so as to produce more timely and higher-quality information whilst reducing response burdens and costs. Demonstrations should focus on statistical indicators related to new work and business, to education and training, to sustainability and the quality of public services to support the monitoring of the social and economic benefits of IST activities, and on promoting advanced statistical systems for improving the information base of policy making. The action is expected to assist in increasing knowledge of the new "immaterial" economic and social phenomena. It is also expected to support the European Statistical System, through transfers and best practice, and provide a co-ordinated approach to the dissemination and exploitation of emerging statistical analysis techniques.
CPA.3 Dependability in services and technologies
Objective: To develop technologies, methods and tools that will meet the emerging generic dependability requirements in the information society, stemming both from the ubiquity and volume of embedded and networked systems and services as well as from the global and complex nature of large-scale information and communication infrastructures, from citizens, administrations and business in terms of technologies, tools, systems, applications and services. The work must reflect the wide scalability and heterogeneity of requirements and operating environments. There will be an emphasis on risk and incident management tools. The scope includes self-monitoring, self-healing infrastructures and services.
CPA.4 Design-for-all for an inclusive information society
Objective: To apply and demonstrate design-for-all principles in the development and piloting of mainstream IST-based products and services to ensure that they better address the needs of the widest range of user categories. The work should consider human factors related to the transition from a computer-centric interaction paradigm to novel interaction environments, and focus on methods and technologies for the provision of high-quality interactivity and accessibility tailored to individual user requirements. It should target the adoption by 2002 of design-for-all standards for consumer devices and on-line services. The work should demonstrate the impact of applying design-for-all principles on the development of usable and acceptable products, interactive applications and services in the information society. The work should be complemented by accompanying measures, notably for the development of a design corpus containing recommendations, tools and methods to raise awareness of universal design and for the establishment and dissemination of best industry practice.
CPA.5 Geographic information
Objective: To contribute to the establishment of a European Geographic Information Infrastructure (EGII) based on a large-scale, heterogeneous and distributed collection of geo-spatial data and services. Research and development is to focus on new models, metaphors, concepts and use of technology, including GNSS, and should promote the general accessibility, user-friendliness and acceptability of GI. Work should also cover legal and ownership issues. Technology testbeds are to be developed, and full-scale demonstrations undertaken on infrastructural, system integration and interoperability issues. Trials should concern the robustness and stability of GI-based systems, the development of new interface paradigms, the creation of enduring information environments for real-world problem solving, and the involvement of large user groups.
All projects will be expected to make adequate provision for participation in concertation with other projects in the same Key Action and, when appropriate, in the framework of cross-programme themes.
Participation in the IST Programme is open to entities from associated states, other European countries, Mediterranean partner countries, international organisations and entities in countries with S&T agreements with the EU in the area of information society technologies, and on a project-by-project basis in all other cases. In 1999, accompanying measures to encourage stronger participation from, in particular, associated states and from countries with co-operation agreements will include "information and partnership" events and facilities, and support for regional information centres and web-sites, organised in conjunction with the horizontal programme on "international co-operation".
Cross participation and co-ordination with other major RTD frameworks (such as the ATP programme in the US, the new "Electronic Commerce" programmes of MPT and MITI in Japan, and established frameworks such as IMS and HFSP) on specific Action Lines in the programme will be stimulated through accompanying measures, including support for EU-US, EU-Canada and EU-Japanese "partnership workshops" in 1999, the co-ordination/synchronisation of focused Calls for Proposals, and support to accompany the participation of EU entities in relevant programmes in third countries.
Co-operation with actions in the COST framework will be strengthened with links to all IST-related COST actions, including the established COST-telecom set. In view of the more upstream and non-competitive nature of COST actions, co-operation will be co-managed with the "Future and Emerging Technologies" in the IST Programme. COST action co-ordinators will be invited to join related IST concertation meetings and RTD workshops.
International consensus and standardisation will be a priority in IST work and in international co-operation. In 1999, accompanying measures will be established within Key Actions to stimulate and co-ordinate European input to ETSI, CEN/CENELEC, ITU working groups, and to industry consensus frameworks (DAVIC, DVB, OMG, IETF, W3C, etc.). Measures will also be established to support European involvement in the Global Business Dialogue focused on the global regulatory environment and common business guidelines for electronic commerce.
Wider information exchange at the international level on the development of the information society will be initiated in liaison with national foresight organisations, for example: the Club of Rome; the Smithsonian and Futures Institutes in the USA, and with other similar organisations in China, Japan and Russia. Focused workshops will be used to bring key contributors together and to consolidate ideas. In 1999, priority will be given to wider international concertation on the implications of electronic commerce for international trade, taxation and economic governance (in conjunction with the activities of the Global Business Dialogue), and on the impacts of globalisation and delocalisation of economic activity in both industrialised and developing countries. Also, accompanying measures will be used to maintain links with EU-trained IST specialists in third countries; in 1999 these will target emerging economies.
Co-ordination with the EUREKA and TEN-telecom frameworks will also be used to encourage industrial co-operation in down-stream product and pan-European service innovation. Information about emerging EUREKA projects and about calls for proposals for TEN-telecom support will be made available to all IST programme participants.
Specific workshops with "risk capital" investment fund managers will be organised to stimulate and facilitate private financing of RTD result exploitation. A first "Investment Forum" was part of the IST Conference in December 1998 (Vienna).
Measures will be established to support "first use" of innovative information-society technologies in SMEs, and "best practice" identification and dissemination.
The participation of SMEs in RTD projects will be facilitated by support measures for partnership brokerage between ongoing projects and new SMEs active in related RTD, and by "exploratory awards" to cover part of the cost of developing SME partnerships and RTD ideas. This will be the subject of a Call for Proposals in 1999. The implementation of these specific measures will be in line with the common approach established with the horizontal programme "Innovation and the participation of SMEs", in order to ensure transparency for the beneficiaries.
The focus of co-ordination across the 5th Framework Programme will be the Key Action on "Improving the socio-economic knowledge base" in Activity 4. The work in the IST Programme will contribute in a consolidated form to the annual report on socio-economic research in the 5th Framework Programme, co-ordinated by this horizontal programme. Information exchange between projects will be facilitated by a series of concertation workshops on specific themes related to EU-policy priorities. In 1999, priority will be given to IST impacts on employment and on economic sustainability of information society development.
European policy development support in the IST Programme will be co-ordinated with the activities of the Commission's Future Studies Unit (Cellule de Prospective), the Institute for Prospective Technology Studies (IPTS-JRC), the European Technology Assessment Network (ETAN) and the Information Society Forum. Jointly organised workshops and conferences will complement co-ordination by an Interservice Group within the Commission. In 1999, the IST Programme will support the exploration of priority themes to be selected in consultation with those bodies.
To contribute to mobility and the development of human capital, Marie Curie Training Fellowships are defined in the framework of the horizontal programme for Activity 4. The IST Programme will support Marie Curie Fellowships for work with IST projects in the form of "individual", "return", "experienced scientist" and "industry-host" fellowships. The implementation of the Marie Curie Fellowships will follow the common rules established with the horizontal programme "Improving the human research potential and the socio-economic knowledge base", in order to ensure the consistent high quality and prestige of the schemes. An open call for candidates will be published in 1999.
- synchronisation of calls for proposals addressing complementary subjects or joint calls for proposals on specific subjects, and, where appropriate, joint evaluations,
- transfer of proposals between programmes when appropriate,
- co-ordination of the monitoring of projects,
- co-ordination of projects through clustering or concertation.
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1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
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791 | 893 | 960 | 995 |
To allow the full provision of 791 MECU to be engaged in fiscal year 1999 and to ensure continuity with 4th Framework Programme lines of RTD, the first two Calls for Proposals in 1999 will be published on 27th January 1999 and 15th March 1999. This will allow new RTD projects to start work, with signed contracts, in late 1999.
The third and fourth Calls for Proposals will be published on 15th June 1999 and 15th October 1999. The proposals submitted in response to these calls will be evaluated in October 1999 and February 2000, and will take up part of the provision for budget commitment in 2000, with projects starting in the first half of 2000.
The proposed selection of Action Lines for each call is based on the guiding principles of keeping together closely related sets of Action Lines within and across Key Actions, and keeping an appropriate balance between:
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| 27/01/99 | 28/04/99 | 15/08/99 | TBA | Key Action 2
- all Action Lines Key Action 4 - part FET - FET.O - part FET.P Cross-programme Actions - CPT.A.1 - CPT.A.2 Accompanying Measures |
| 15/03/99 | 18/06/99 | 15/10/99 | TBA | Key Action 1
- all Action Lines Key Action 3 - all Action Lines International Co-operation |
| 15/06/99 | 15/10/99 | 15/02/2000 | TBA | Key Action 4
- part Cross-programme Actions - CPT.A.3 - CPT.A.4 - CPT.A.5 |
| 15/10/99 | 30/01/2000 | 01/06/2000 | TBA | Key Action 4
- part FET - part FET.P Research Networking Innovation & Dissemination SMEs |