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home > In the EU > EU and national policies > Commission unveils five-year strategy to boost the digital economy Commission unveils five-year strategy to boost the digital economy The European Commission has adopted the “i2010: European Society 2010” initiative. It is part of the Commission’s renewed Lisbon Agenda to boost research and development in ICT and foster growth and jobs in the digital economy. Launching the five-year strategy, Viviane Reding, Commissioner for Information Society, said that the digital convergence experts were predicting is now happening. “Voice over IP, Web TV, online music, movies on mobile telephones – all of this is reality,” she said. The strategy will offer a regulatory framework for Europe’s digital economy. As a European Commission press release recalls, Europe lags behind the US and Japan as regards to investment in ICT research with only 80€ per head as compared to 350€ in Japan and €400 in the US. A series of policies endeavour to bridge the gap. The initiative aims particularly to support growth in the information society and the media industry. It follows the 22-23 March 2005 European Council meeting for a mid-term assessment of the 2000 Lisbon Strategy. EU leaders acknowledged the shortcomings and delays to achieve Lisbon’s goals. In the conclusion of the European Council they decided on a relaunch of the Strategy taking more into account growth and employment. i2010 is the first Commission initiative to be adopted under the EU’s renewed Lisbon strategy. The policies priorities of the i2010 initiative are:
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