Commissioners duck the telecoms issue
What is Europe doing wrong on e-commerce? Europe's digital
economy lags at least two years behind the US, despite the fact
that the EU is home to some of the world's most innovative
technology companies.
Now the European Commission has launched an 18-point plan to
close the IT gap between Europe and the US. But the report itself
is a perfect example of what is hampering Euro e-business.
Item one on the EC's agenda should be telecoms reform. It is the
lack of cheap broadband telecoms access that is hampering
e-business and mass Internet take-up in the UK and continental
Europe.
But telecoms reform does not figure in the plan. Instead it is
the familiar mixture - computers in schools, an IT literate
workforce, Internet in the local library and more teleworking.
As in the 1994 Bangemann Report, which was meant to kick-start
the Internet in Europe, Internet-based e-commerce is hardly
considered. Making the same mistake as the Bangemann report, the
emphasis is on education and e-government.
Broadening e-citizenship is a laudable goal. But the US
experience suggests this happens only when cheap, always-on Net
access is available to consumers at home. Once they have that,
there are few barriers to IT literacy, teleworking and
e-citizenship.
It would be unfortunate if the EU's "Net Generation" report
allows commissioners to say. "We're doing something at last". They
must do more, and telecoms is the key. Access must get much faster
and much cheaper - very soon.
Otherwise, instead of building a rival to Silicon Valley in
Europe, we will simply build a wired-up version of Camberwick
Green.
