e-Inclusion In Europe: Bridging The Digital Divide | Gov Monitor

Want to gain insight into what future connected technologies could look like?

Check out two new policy reports on EU-funded technology research – one on helping more Europeans get connected to the internet, the other on the communications devices we may be using in the future.

The two reports are published as part of the ICT Results’ Policy Perspective series. ICT Results showcases the achievements and activities of ICT research projects funded by the European Union. The service, supported by the Directorate-General for Information Society and Media, offers analysis and insights into future technologies that will affect our lives over the coming years.

Bridging the digital divide

The first report, ‘ICT for all: Technology supporting an inclusive world’, explores Europe’s vision of a society where every individual can make a valuable contribution. As a policy, e-inclusion aims to leverage technology to make society more inclusive.

“Investments in pioneering and commercially focused research will produce information and communication technologies (ICTs) that should help everyone – including the elderly, disabled and marginalised – to fulfil their potential,” the report states.

The report provides numerous examples of EU-funded research projects that work to bridge this digital divide: almost one-third of the EU’s citizens, or about 150 million people, do not actively participate in this high-tech, connected world for various reasons.

For example, the UNIC project developed a cost-effective way to use satellite technology to connect those living in remote areas to fast internet services. Other research projects worked to develop assistive technologies to help specific disadvantaged groups make the most of existing ICTs. One of them, the ENABLED project, developed software applications with tactile, haptic and audio feedback devices to help visually impaired people feel and hear digital maps of where they want to go.

Meanwhile, the SOPRANO project is developing stand-alone assistive technologies to help older adults compensate for any motor, sensory and cognitive difficulties they may experience due to ageing.

Next-generation internet

The second new Policy Perspective report, ‘The future of media in a networked world’, examines a future where media channels – from mobile phones to cinema – are interconnected online.

The evolution of the internet is making it possible for all our media channels to connect to the internet. And there is a growing “network of things” – everyday objects embedded with chips to make them smart, networked and accessible over the internet. This diverse network of the future will provide us with new, powerful applications that deliver more interactive, personalised and “experiential” content than ever.

“European R&D is embracing the many benefits of networked media, which paves the way for the next generation internet,” the report states.

For example, Semantic Hi-Fi developed software to help music lovers visualise the structure of a piece through a graphic display which will enable them to navigate and even to modify elements of a musical composition. The 2020 3D Media project is developing high-quality presentations through stereoscopic or immersive images in the home and for public venues, such as cinemas. And the Mobile3DTV project is developing the core elements of the next generation of 3D TV television for mobile devices.

ICT Research for everyone

The two policy reports are part of the updates on EU-funded research published by the ICT Results service. In addition to regular Policy Perspective reports, ICT Results has published more than 150 features and some 60 fact sheets in 2009 alone.

You can keep up to date on European ICT research in 2010 through the free-of-charge ICT Results service.

More reports in Policy Perspective series are available on the newly revamped publications page. Stay tuned next year for our reports examining the links between ICT, education and culture; ICT, justice and security; and ICT and health.

http://www.thegovmonitor.com/world_news/europe/e-inclusion-in-europe-bridging-the-digital-divide-20111.html