There is widespread agreement that convergence is occurring at the technological level. That is to say that digital technology now allows both traditional and new communication services - whether voice, data, sound or pictures - to be provided over many different networks.
Current activity in the market suggests that operators from the sectors affected by convergence are acting on the opportunities provided by technological advances to enhance their traditional services and to branch out into new activities. Telecommunications, Media and Information Technology sectors are seeking cross-product and cross-platform development as well as cross-sector share-holding. Examples of new products and services being delivered include:
Such developments represent concrete examples of an Information Society in Europe. They show its potential to touch the lives of every citizen. They also highlight a significant change in the range and diversity of traditional telecommunications and media services.
The implications of these developments are far reaching. Convergence is not just about technology. It is about services and about new ways of doing business and of interacting with society. The changes described in this Green Paper have the potential to substantially improve the quality of life for Europe's citizens; to better integrate Europe's regions into the heart of the European economy, and to make businesses more effective and competitive on global and national markets.
The emergence of new services and the development of existing services are expected to expand the overall information market, providing new routes to the citizen and building on Europe's rich cultural heritage, its potential for innovation and its creative ambitions.
The global nature of communications platforms today, in particular, the Internet, are providing a key which will open the door to the further integration of the world economy. This will open opportunities and challenges not only for the European Union, but also for our neighbours in Central and Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean, and more broadly, in the developing world. At the same time, the low cost of establishing a presence on the World Wide Web, is making it possible both for businesses of all sizes to develop a regional and global reach, and for consumers to benefit from the wider choice of goods and services on offer. Globalisation will therefore be key theme in future developments, as changes in Europe are mirrored by developments all over the World.
If Europe can embrace these changes by creating an environment which supports rather than holds back the process of change we will have created a powerful motor for job creation and growth, increasing consumer choice and promoting cultural diversity. If Europe fails to do so, or fails to do so rapidly enough, there are real risks that our businesses and citizens will be left to travel in the slow lane of an information revolution which is being embraced by businesses, users and by Governments around the World.
Governments and policy makers will have a key role in ensuring that such an environment is in place. However, beyond the regulatory framework which is the central focus of this Green Paper, efforts will continue to be needed, as recognised at the recent Jobs Summit, to equip Europe's workforce with the skills which the Information Society requires. Continuing support should be given to research and development activities. Governments, regional and local authorities, as well as the European institutions must lead, by example, by fully embracing the technologies and services which the process of convergence is making possible.
The future regulatory environment will be of crucial importance. The European Union has already developed a comprehensive framework for managing the transition in telecommunications from a monopoly to a fully competitive world from 1 January 1998. We have also put in place a framework supporting an internal market for broadcasting. Getting the right regulatory framework must be firmly placed within these existing achievements. At the same time, this Green Paper represents a milestone in allowing the Community to look beyond the 1998 deadline and to assess the implications for the sectors affected by convergence.
This Green Paper argues that the development of new services could be hindered by the existence of a range of barriers, including regulatory barriers, at different levels of the market. There are, however, differing views on the adequacy of existing regulatory frameworks to deal with the changing environment. One view is that the development of new products and services is being held back by regulatory uncertainty - that existing rules were defined for a national, analogue and mono-media environment, but that services increasingly cut across different traditional sectors and geographical boundaries, and that they may be provided over a variety of platforms. This calls into question the underlying rationale beneath regulatory approaches in the different sectors affected by convergence. Proponents of this view would argue that such regulatory uncertainty holds back investment and damages the prospects for the implementation of the Information Society.
An alternative view would hold that the specific characteristics of the existing separate sectors will limit the scope for service convergence. It further would contend that the role of the media industry as the bearer of social, cultural and ethical values within our society is independent of the technology relied upon to reach the consumer. This would mean that regulation of economic conditions and that of the provision of information services should be separated to ensure efficiency and quality.
These matters need to be debated and resolved. Finding solutions will need to take account of the full range of interests in the various sectors affected by convergence. At the same time, the potential for change will be felt in different ways and at different levels (e.g. technology, industry, services and markets). Whilst digitalisation means that convergence is well advanced at the level of technology, this Green Paper does not automatically assume that convergence at one level inevitably leads to the same degree of convergence at other levels. Equally, there is no assumption that convergence in technologies, industries, services and/or markets will necessarily imply a need for a uniform regulatory environment.
This Green Paper responds to the requirement for debate. It is consciously interrogative. It analyses issues, it identifies options and it poses questions for public comment. It does not take positions at this stage nor reach conclusions.
In Chapters I and II, the Green Paper analyses the convergence phenomenon - its technological underpinnings, current developments in the market, and their possible impact on the telecommunications, media and information technology sectors.
In Chapter III, actual and potential barriers are identified which may hold back these technological and market developments. Some of these reflect current market or industrial issues of the sectors affected by convergence, whilst others arise from current regulatory approaches. Some of these issues are already being dealt with in Community initiatives, (for example, in areas of intellectual property, media ownership, electronic commerce and digital signatures) and where this is the case those initiatives are identified. In other cases, these barriers serve as a basis for considering the need, if any, to adapt current regulatory frameworks in the light of the convergence phenomenon.
Chapter IV provides a detailed discussion of issues associated with existing and possible future regulatory frameworks or approaches. These issues fall into eight broad areas:
The chapter concludes with a discussion of public interest objectives, options for possible future regulatory models and issues raised at an international level.
Finally, in Chapter V, a set of principles for the future regulatory policy in the sectors affected by convergence are set out, and possible options for future regulatory approaches are identified as a basis for discussion.
The Commission believes that the 5 months public consultation period will allow broad participation and debate around issues which are important for citizens, business and for the further development of the Information Society. Comments can be sent in paper or electronic form, and the debate will be assisted by the creation of a specific web-site on which electronic comments can be accessed.[1] There will also be public hearings during the course of the consultation. On the basis of the comments received, the Commission intends to produce a Communication by June 1998.
This Green Paper represents a step on the way to securing the benefits of convergence for European social and economic development. The June Communication, setting out the results of the public consultation, will allow political positions to be taken by the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, and for clear objectives for future policy to be established.
This Green Paper initiates a new phase in the European Union's policy approach to the communications environment. As such it represents a key element of the overall framework put in place to support the development of an Information Society. It builds on the current strengths of the frameworks for telecommunications (launched by the landmark 1987 Green Paper on telecommunication[2]) and for media (established by various Community legislative initiatives). This Green paper builds on these achievements, and offers all interested parties an opportunity to comment on the future shape of regulation, in the post-1998 communications environment, in the sectors affected by convergence.
This first step is intended to pave the way for the development of an appropriate regulatory environment which will facilitate the full achievement of the opportunities offered by the Information Society, in the interests of Europe and its citizens as the 21st century begins.