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LEVERAGE News No 3, September 1997

Welcome | Co-ordinator | Pedagogical | Technophile | Conference report


InterACTS

where LEVERAGE communicates with other ACTS projects

Gabriella Cattaneo, from Databank consulting in Milan and project manager of FAIR (Forecast and Assessment of Socio-Economic Impacts of Advanced Communications and Recommendations - AC093) talks to Philippa Wright.

PW: What is the main goal of the FAIR project and who are your principal collaborators?
GC: FAIR’s main goal is to assess the impact on the ACTS programme of global developments in advanced communications in Europe and world-wide. The key question we try to answer is whether the ACTS RTD work is consistent with major social, cultural, economic and policy trends in the external European and international marketplace. The project is led by Databank Consulting, a market research and consulting company, with the support of SPRU (Science Policy Research Unit of the University of Sussex) and MERIT (Maastricht Economic Research Institute on Innovation and Technology) plus another private consulting company, Technology Investment Partners (TIP) from Paris.

PW: How are you measuring the impact of advanced communications technology?
GC: I wish there was a simple direct impact to measure! In fact the evolution of the socio-economic system is a complex process resulting from the interaction of several factors, of which technical innovation is only one. I believe that the main role of advanced communications is that of an enabler, creating opportunities for new ways of working, socialising and having fun, and especially - possibly the most far-reaching change - new ways to accumulate and exchange knowledge. We try to understand the mechanisms of these changes and the ways in which Europe can exploit the best opportunities for balanced economic growth from ACTS-type technologies. We also look at and partially produce quantitative data and market forecasts, but this is only a part of the picture.

PW: What are the major findings of your research so far?
GC: The central concern of our conclusions this year (FAIR 1997 main report) is that the pace of ICT technical innovation in the supply structure, and regulatory liberalisation, is proceeding more rapidly than other necessary social and economic changes. Many small companies and individuals are still at an early stage of the learning curve needed to use new services effectively. However, due to the pressure caused by the convergence of media and telecom markets there are signs of an acceleration in growth, especially in the mass market. The next two or three years will be crucial. If demand takes off stimulating a virtuous circle of innovation adoption, then Europe has a chance to start closing the gap with, for example, the United States.

PW: How do the results of your research feed into the development of the ACTS programme and how can readers find out more about FAIR’s work?
GC: The European Commission uses FAIR results as input to help define the strategic evolution of the ACTS Programme. We have also developed a series of Working Papers (presently 31 titles) reporting the results of our analysis of specific issues (technical, regulatory and policy, social and economic) which we believe can help related projects gain an understanding of these issues. The topics covered range from ‘The role of AC services in preventing social exclusion’ to ‘The implementation of Data Protection Legislation’. The Working Papers can be downloaded from the FAIR Web site: URL: http://www.analysys.co.uk/acts/fair and I would be very happy to respond to any further requests for information or to answer questions from your readers. My e-mail is cattaneo@dbcons.it

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