Crystalizing the EU digital policy an exploration into the digital single market

Mirela Mărcuț Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy An Exploration into the Digital Single Market Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy Mirela Mărcuţ Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy An Exploration into the Digital Single Market Mirela Mărcuţ Department of International Relations & European Studies University of Oradea Oradea, Romania ISBN 978-3-319-69226-5    ISBN 978-3-319-69227-2 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69227-2 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017955374 © Springer International Publishing AG 2017 This work is subject to copyright All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Preface The European integration process has transgressed to another pathway, the digital space “Digital” is a keyword in the policies, speeches, and strategies of the European institutions that are tied not only to information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the Union but also to other types of common policies of the Union, such as industry, the social dimension, research, or security These are signs of the importance of digital policies in the Union, namely, that digital policies are a central part of the European public discourse and that digital policies are horizontal, sweeping across sectors This is in keeping with the vision that ICTs are general purpose technologies But, the reality of the digital space of the Union does not reflect the idea supported by the discourse of European leaders, namely, that these technologies have had a revolutionary impact on the economy and society of the Union This is partly true, but not exactly the result of targeted digital policies addressed and implemented by the European Commission The most recent Digital Economy and Society Index creates an accurate picture of the effects of digitization and digital policies For instance, 79% of Europeans are regular Internet users while the risk of digital exclusion is still a reality for elderly people or low-income persons Moreover, the report states that “major gaps” exist in the digital convergence of Member States On digitization, the report states that “merely a fifth of companies in the EU-28 is highly digitized.” Hence, the outlook of the digital performance of the Union is similar to a puzzle where certain pieces are still missing If we reverse the argument, the puzzle is halfway to being finished because of the constant innovation pursued in the private sector, considering the assumption, which is also at the basis of this monograph, that the information and communication technologies and the digital space created as a result have been put forward by the private sector Hence, the main purpose of this book is to pursue and analyze the targeted digital policies of the European Union to advance the existing digital space The starting point of this analysis is the Single Market and its corresponding internal market policy that is stated in the fundamental documents of the European Union, as being based on the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital, and labor The connection between the Single Market and the Digital Single Market, v vi Preface crystallizing the digital policies of the Union, provides for one of the basic hypotheses of the monograph, namely, that the Digital Single Market has become a different space than the Single Market, as the former is based on the digital space created by ICTs, while the latter is based on the borderless space created as a result of concerted actions and concessions by Member States to the newly created Community and, later, Union The assumption is that the real space, namely, the Single Market, supports the digital space, which strives for the freedom of movement of information and data The Single Market, as we know it today, is the creation of the Delors Commission, which streamlined the efforts to remove physical, technical, and fiscal barriers impeding the freedom of movement within the European Community Actually, it is safe to say that the Delors Commission achieved some of the most important improvements of the EEC/EU, starting from the White Paper on Completing the Internal Market and culminating with the European Monetary Union and the Maastricht treaty These are indeed crucial points in the European integration process The Delors Commission witnessed the birth of another space, namely, the digital space, considering the technological revolution of the 1970s and 1980s and creation of the World Wide Web in 1989 at CERN. The European Union identifies this space today as the Digital Single Market In many instances, the Digital Single Market resembles the Single Market, but it is not at the same level of integration as the latter This new space is the result of global, European, and national tendencies aimed at harnessing the potential of information and communication technologies It is based on the evolution of the Single Market, in that it is supported by the core principle of the European Union, namely, the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital, and people But, the digital space and the market created within it are not subject to the same conditions, pressures, regulations, and policies, especially because they are based on disruptive technologies, particularly the Internet Both the Single Market and the Digital Single Market have one key fact in common, namely, that they are artificial creations based on global tendencies that must be adapted to the particular conditions of the Union Undoubtedly, the Digital Single Market (DSM) and the Single Market are tied in an interdependent policy relationship Their baseline is common, namely, achieving freedom of movement In case of the DSM, freedom of movement of information should be a given, considering the advances in technology and the development of the Internet across the recent decades However, the Union poses a peculiar situation in the digital space, namely, that it is not a fully formed integrated digital market and, consequently, national borders are multiplied into the digital space, creating digital barriers, apart from the electronic frontiers created across the continent This is geo-blocking, a situation generated by private companies in the digital space to block certain users from accessing certain content, either copyrighted or not This is one of the basic differences between the Single Market and the Digital Single Market In the case of the former, the barriers were imposed mostly by public authorities in an effort to protect their own national markets and businesses Preface vii This is just one example by which the Digital Single Market has begun to transgress the internal market policy Being a horizontal policy, it affects and intersects with virtually all other domains of society and economy, from social policies to public administration and research and innovation The structure of this monograph follows the evolution of the digital space in the European Economic Community/ European Union in terms of discourse, policy, and strategy The historical overview of the digital space helps create a clearer image on the current status of the Digital Single Market, and it is a proper foundation for the examination of the existing digital policy model Similarly, the monograph also provides a comparative approach of the construction of both spaces, starting from similarities and differences in terms of barriers and the approach to integration These two pillars of the research contribute to the crystallization of the EU digital policy by explaining the evolution of interests and interactions between policy actors with regard to digital technologies and their connection to the internal market policy In terms of discourse, the main component of the research is based on the study of the Jacques Delors archives, courtesy of the Jean Monnet Foundation for Europe in Lausanne The discourse analysis helps create a more accurate portrait of the construction of the Internal Market in the 1980s and 1990s, but, at the same time, it tracks the evolution of the information society during the tenure of Jacques Delors at the European Commission Among others, Delors’ discourse revealed a commitment for the advancement of the European integration using pragmatic methods while revealing the secondary plan of research and technological development of Europe that could help develop the Internal Market Moreover, due to the openness of information and policy data in the cyber space, the research is highly supported on open primary sources, namely, statements, speeches, and policy documents, as well as legal texts of the European Union that are available online In terms of strategy, the research addresses the main strategies drawn by the European Commission to address the changes put forward by the information and communication technologies From technological Europe to the single information space and, ultimately, to the information society and Digital Single Market, the views of the European Union on the influence of ICTs have developed in tandem with the development of the digital space created by them What has remained constant is the idea that the Community/Union has not been using its technological potential to the fullest due to different constraints Delors’ discourse and strategies of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s reveal the connection between the technological development and the internal market, as well as his efforts and those of his successors to address the constraints In terms of policy, the research focuses on analyzing the established policy model for the current Digital Single Market using the example provided by the Single Market The research inspects the interaction between policy actors, their influence in the European decision-making process, and their interests in order to establish the digital policy model, which is presented in comparison with the internal market policy Despite the fact that they share a foundation, the DSM and the SM have different policy approaches stemming from two directions, namely, the interaction viii Preface between private and public policy actors and the developing reach of the digital policies to more fields Ultimately, the focus of this book reflects a socioeconomic approach on digital policies in the European Union Apart from analyzing how they are elaborated, the monograph takes a look also at the implementation process and the success of such policies under the current policy model The normative dimension is addressed by putting forward policy recommendations and designing a possible model for the EU digital policy of the future Lastly, we must address the utility of such a research on the European Union, considering that the current focus is on migration, threats to the integration from within taking the form of Brexit, illiberal democracies, or security threats Essentially, the discussion on the digital policies of the European Union relates to an innovative vision on the European integration process, the digital integration, based on the fifth freedom of movement, which is more and more present in the EU public discourse A continuation of the research on the electronic frontier in the European Union published in 2016, this monograph is a digital policy manual for students and experts alike and an exploration into the digital future of the European Union Special acknowledgement and credit is necessary for the Jean Monnet Foundation for Europe in Lausanne, Switzerland, which gave me access to the archives of Jacques Delors as a recipient of the Henri Rieben Scholarship in February 2017 Oradea, Romania Mirela Mărcuţ Contents 1 Theoretical Aspects on the Digital Economy and Information Society 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Theoretical Framework 2 1.3 Brief Conceptual Clarifications 6 1.3.1 Digital Space 1.3.2 Digitization 1.3.3 Information Society 1.4 Conclusion 10 References 11 2 Mapping the Beginning of the Information Society in the EEC/EU 13 2.1 Introduction 13 2.2 Building the Information Society: Context and Necessity 14 2.3 “New Technologies” in Society, Economy, and  in the Community 17 2.4 The Community Dimension: Booster for the  Information Society 21 2.5 Research and Technological Development: Creating the  Basic Architecture of the Information Society (1985–1994) 24 2.6 The Information Society Beyond Delors’ Tenure 32 2.7 From the Information Society to the Digital Market 41 2.8 Advent of the Digital Single Market 47 2.9 Digital Single Market Towards a Data Economy/Data Society 50 2.10 Mapping the Evolution of the Single Market in the EEC/EU 54 2.11 The Internal Market: Delors’ Magnum Opus 55 2.12 Conclusion 69 References 70 ix x Contents 3 Single Market and the Digital Single Market 75 3.1 Introduction 75 3.2 Single Market Versus Digital Single Market: Conceptualization of Terms Based on Integration Theories 77 3.2.1 Single Market 77 3.2.2 Digital Single Market 78 3.3 Foundations of the Two Markets 81 3.3.1 Liberalization and Collective Action 81 3.3.2 International Dimensions of the Two Markets 85 3.4 Barriers of the Two Markets 88 3.4.1 Physical Barriers 89 3.4.2 Technical Barriers 92 3.4.3 Fiscal Barriers 95 3.4.4 Social Barriers 96 3.5 Widening and Deepening the Two Markets 98 3.5.1 Widening 101 3.5.2 Deepening 103 References 105 4 Crystallizing the EU Digital Policy 109 4.1 Introduction 109 4.2 Single Market Policy Cycle 110 4.3 Single Market Governance Cycle 117 4.4 Digital Policy Cycle 120 4.5 Governance Cycle of the Digital Single Market 125 4.5.1 Adopt Legislation 125 4.5.2 Transpose Digital Legislation 128 4.5.3 Inform About the Legislation 129 4.5.4 Enable the Legislation 130 4.5.5 Connect Authorities 131 4.5.6 Solve and Evaluate 132 4.6 Actors in the Union Digital Policy 136 4.6.1 Policy Actors at the Supranational Level 137 4.6.2 Supranational Political Actors 138 4.7 National Policy Actors Involved in Digital Policies 156 4.7.1 National (Including Local and Regional) Governments and Parliaments 157 4.7.2 National Regulatory Authorities 161 4.8 Interest Groups 162 4.8.1 Telecom Companies and Consumer Organizations 163 4.8.2 Rights Holders and Online Platforms 164 References 170 202 5  Future Perspectives on EU Digital Policy The administrative support and commitment of the national and local governments also differ from state to state Usually, the mechanism used is coordination and interagency cooperation for the promotion of digital policies, from the e-­Estonia Council initiative, meant to promote the digitization of society, to the Ministry for Digital Policy in Greece Other examples include cross-agency cooperation with direct supervision from the Prime Minister or government umbrella plans that are part of the overall development strategies of the respective state Consequently, we find that there is no harmonized national digital policy model at the EU Member State level related to the interaction between national and subnational actors, as well as interest groups What is common in every digital progress report is the commitment to advance eGovernment services and to improve the communication between citizens and institutions, using a set of similar tools, such as single user registration for multiple eGovernment websites and single access points offering interoperable services to stimulate use of such services (Germany, Estonia, Belgium, Lithuania) Other measures to stimulate use of eGovernment services are provisions to make certain features mandatory when dealing with the public administration For instance, Italy has made eInvoicing mandatory for businesses dealing with the public administration, while in Latvia the use of eHealth service is to become mandatory Notwithstanding, eGovernment services suffer from other challenges than lack of trust or lack of interoperability between services Most notably, the digital reports reviewed show that the federal structure of the state is a challenge for the use of such services, due to the intricacies and lack of interoperability between federal and regional services (Austria, Belgium, and Germany) The prime challenge refers to the lack of cross-­ platform communication between different eGovernment services at different levels of the federal structure Lastly, when looking at the administrative levels, we observe the growing involvement of the regional or local levels of government in digital policies For instance, Wallonia in Belgium has its own regional strategy on harnessing the potential of digital technologies, “Digital Wallonia” (European Commission 2017b) In Denmark, local authorities act as facilitators for the development of broadband infrastructure In other states, the national level provides state-funding schemes and implements projects funded by European structural and investment funds to develop the broadband infrastructure, especially in rural areas (Poland, Denmark) Similarly, local administrations can receive national funding for setting up local eGovernment services in Finland In terms of the integration of digital technologies into the economy, virtually all the digital reports emphasize the need for more focus on digitization, pursued especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) Digitization of SMEs, the industry as a whole, along with the encouragement to set up entrepreneurships, are some of the major strategies that are used by the national level to advance the digital policy agenda Firstly, the transformation of the traditional sectors of the economy within the digitization process is a major concern among the national policy agendas, especially in the case of traditionally industrial countries, where powerful big companies 5.3  A Policy Model for the Digital Policy 203 still function The Czech Republic stands out in this category, as its 2017 digital progress report states: “for an industrial country like the Czech Republic, Digital Technologies and the Fourth Industrial Revolution represent an opportunity and should be taken advantage of” (European Commission 2017c) The response of the Czech Republic to this challenge is to create an office coordinating the activities of several ministries under the responsibility of the government, whose task is “to unify activities in the field of the digital agenda and signals that the digital agenda is a national priority” (European Commission 2017c) Similarly, the digital policy documents have a similar “umbrella” approach, with the Industry 4.0 strategy, “which maps the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and explores possible measures to address them” (European Commission 2017c) The report states that big companies have started to adhere to this strategy, while SMEs require ­further support Germany is another important industrial country, where we find the same subject of the Fourth Industrial Revolution Notably, the report states that “it appears that big and micro companies are adapting well to the digital era, but medium sized companies, 10-249 employees, are slow adopters and frequently lack a digitisation strategy” (European Commission 2017d) The federal government also considers digitization of the industry a priority, and its response has been to build a platform with experts to offer policy recommendations, a veritable policy network made of experts to provide “practical guidance to support and accelerate technology adoption at company level” (European Commission 2017d) When looking at the digital progress reports, their research has found that SMEs are at the center of digital policy initiatives, especially in terms of helping them integrate digital technologies In relation to SMEs, generally, the first step in the promotion of digitization is by raising awareness and informing SMEs and entrepreneurs with regard to the possible benefits their enterprises would entail if they included ERPs or CRMs into their business platforms For instance, France has an e-business policy centered on raising awareness, then training entrepreneurs and, finally, on “incentives for digital investments in the form of ‘digital loans’, within the framework of the investment programme for the future, for a total amount of €300 million of subsidized loans granted by the Public Investment Bank” (European Commission 2017e) Germany has made the digitization of industry a government priority and has set up a network of SMEs competence centers, with the purpose “to inform and sensitise SMEs about the potential provided by digitisation The centres support SMEs in testing advanced technologies and in qualifying staff” (European Commission 2017d) The second step in promoting digitization is to provide some form of aid, either in the form of tax credits or in the form of loans, access to equity or debt finance For instance, the government of Luxembourg pays half of the diagnosis and projects phases of SMEs that proceed with digitizing their companies Similarly, it has also created the Digital Tech Fund, with the purpose “to finance the development of startups in the ICT sector,” in cybersecurity, FinTech (financial technology), Big Data, Internet of Things, etc (European Commission 2017f) Spain has put in place a similar mechanism to support digitization, entitled Industry 4.0, by which it provides financial aid to companies, either for integration of digital technologies and 204 5  Future Perspectives on EU Digital Policy innovation or for industrial research, in the amount of €97.8 million (European Commission 2017g) Denmark has put together also an accelerator program, entitled Scale-Up Its aim is to “foster accelerated growth among business by working with already established businesses The target was to set up ten hubs in Denmark to consolidate positions of strength in each of the regions” (European Commission 2017h) The other forms of support for companies refer to the creation of a proper regulatory environment and relevant instruments to allow integration of digital technologies Most importantly, these instruments are generally put together with the cooperation and involvement of the private sector For instance, Denmark has put together a Digital Growth Panel Finland, one of the most advanced digital economies of the European Union, has created support mechanisms and put forward ­initiatives in this sense: “one programme focuses specifically on identifying digital service platforms and ecosystems and on fostering their growth Another one seeks to build a growth environment for digital transport services A third approach is to foster the development and more widespread use of robotics and automation solutions Yet another aims to increase usage of big data and business based on big data in Finland, by eliminating unnecessary hindrances and bottlenecks in the leveraging and dissemination of data” (European Commission 2017i) Denmark’s Digital Growth Panel is made up of enterprises, which is consulted regularly on the opportunity and effects of legislation in the field When looking at the approaches to the integration of digital technology, the overview has shown that there is little emphasis put on the issue of cybersecurity of companies or other high-tech aspects related to digital policies Only some of the more advanced Member States in digital policy have put emphasis on such issues Denmark, the first country in the DESI ranking, has created a consultation mechanism in the form of a business council for cybersecurity, in order to provide “recommendation to the minister on how to raise the level of cybersecurity in SMEs” (European Commission 2017h) Finland, the second country ranked in the Digital Economic and Society Index, has also put forward a strategy on information security in 2016 with the purpose to make Finland the world’s most trusted digital business environment (European Commission 2017i) Similarly, the digital strategy of the Netherlands considers human capital and cybersecurity as “preconditions for digitization,” especially considering its shortage of specialists in the field (European Commission 2017j) Higher-performing countries have started to pursue innovation and research as novel aspects of digital policies One example is Luxembourg, with its start-up fund to support Big Data, Internet of Things, and other cutting-edge research The focus of the worst-performing countries is different in the sense that it is basic, referring to the need to catch up with other Member States Most importantly, in low-performing countries, digital skills are generally low, while digitization is not pursued actively For instance, despite having a good score in Connectivity, Romania is the last in the ranking, with no identified digitization strategy and mostly private initiatives to boost digital skills (European Commission 2017a) The second to the last country in the index, Bulgaria, is also focused on boosting digital skills 5.3  A Policy Model for the Digital Policy 205 and digitization The reports of these two states emphasize the need for more commitment from the governmental level for active and sustained digital policies, combined with a proper dialogue and alliance with private companies and institutions for the development of digital skills In terms of social digital policies, the involvement of national authorities is extremely important for their success The digital progress reports of the Member States have revealed that, generally, digital skills can also be boosted by redesigning and adapting the national educational curriculum or by bringing together private interested groups, stakeholders, and public administrations in the national coalitions for digital skills The model of the Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition touches also the national level, where authorities are also encouraged to create their own versions of national coalitions All the digital reports trace the activities of the national digital coalitions, which are not harmonized initiatives coordinated by the national public authorities Several countries not have established national coalitions, such as Germany, Estonia, France, or Greece Despite the fact that digital policies revolve mainly around the Digital Single Market, which is an EU-wide initiative with policies that should be uniform, the social aspects of digital policies are different because of their dependency to the social environment of the Member States The Digital Economy and Society Index traces the gaps in digital skills and use of the Internet; hence, we posit that the national societal specificities have a direct influence to the situation of the digital skills This is why no overall European policy model for the digital skills could be applied to the all Member States, hence the need to work also directly with the national level For this reason, each Member State is encouraged to pursue its own national coalition for skills and jobs adapted to their own societal issues This initiative is replicated also at a regional level Not all Member States have their own national coalitions The Commission reports that 17 states have created their own national framework Nationally, they are led by different entities; hence, there is no uniformity in the national leadership of these coalitions For instance, the Romanian coalition is led by the Association of Producers and Distributors of Electrical and Electronic Equipment, which is a nongovernmental organization, according to its statute (The Association of Producers and Distributors of Electrical and Electronic Equipment 2015) Similarly, Spain also has a coalition led by an NGO, while other Member States have publicly assumed coalitions, like Cyprus or Slovenia (Digital Single Market 2017b) Expanded projects, like the example posed by Google in creating the digital e-learning initiatives, entail also collaboration with the national level Google’s commitment for the advance of digital skills in Europe is also represented in enhanced cooperation with national authorities to launch nation-wide initiatives, tailored to the specificity of the state For instance, Google created the initiative, entitled Activat (Activate yourself) in collaboration with the Government of Spain, which entails a series of online courses related to digital marketing, cloud computing, electronic commerce, or web analytics, in order to boost digital skills (Google 2017b) Similar initiatives are present in almost all Member States, which are aimed 206 5  Future Perspectives on EU Digital Policy at boosting digital skills of unemployed or students, or are mixed initiatives (Spain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia) With the exception of Denmark and Estonia, all the Member States mentioned in this category have performed under the EU average in 2016, if the percentage of individuals with basic or above basic digital skills is measured (European Commission Digital Scoreboard 2016) Similarly, other initiatives are aimed only at boosting digital presence of SMEs and digital skills of entrepreneurs and employees (Italy, UK, France, Greece, Poland, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Austria) (Google 2017a) Despite the similarities in approaches with reference to digital skills or actions focused on digitization, the interaction between policy actors and the formulation of policies differs from state to state In a sense, the national level is similar to the European level in terms of approaching digital policies, considering the gap between strategic emphasis put on “digital” aspects and the fluid system of coordination at the governmental level This aspect is especially valid when looking at how national governments approach digital skills, by setting up cross-sectoral bodies and teaming up with the private sector to deliver new curriculums or to map and address the gaps existent between skills taught in the educational system and skills required by the labor market There are only a few examples when this crucial step in the process to advance digital skills is used and generally, this step is pursued in countries with relatively high digital skills, like Denmark (European Commission 2017h) However, the cooperation between private and public sectors in relation to digital skills is functioning well at the national level Concluding this section, we are able to provide an overall model on how Member States have approached digital policies Most reports reviewed highlight the existence of a comprehensive national digital strategy, which is implemented by a specialized ministry or an inter-departmental body coordinating with responsible ministries and agencies within the national and local level of government The strategy and subsequent policy formulations and decisions are designed or implemented in consultation with the targets of the policies, especially enterprises, but less with the academic sector When looking at infrastructure, most states are focused on expanding the network coverage over their territory and this is achieved either using a market-based approach or by actively promoting such investment with national or European structural funds In case of digital public services, the public administration is in charge of bringing users to the digital space, actively building their digital skills or providing the access to the Internet What is clear is that the government and responsible institutions must be involved both in providing the infrastructure, the programs, and the policy to be part of the digital space, as well as in creating the conditions for the development of a working digital economy and digital government There are obvious discrepancies and gaps among the digitization at the national level, and consequently, there are different national policies to address the specific challenges However, the solutions posited by different administrations can be replicated in other countries, especially those that are low-performing countries For this reason, the DESI and the digital progress reports must evolve to provide 5.3  A Policy Model for the Digital Policy 207 Member States with specific targeted recommendations, based on the sharing of best practices in an effort to encourage further cooperation and, eventually, more integration of digital policies at the European level 5.3.5  Impact of Digital Policies in the EU The current digital policy model is not straightforward and constantly subjected to changes, depending on the results obtained at the European and national level The evolution of the information society has shown the recognition of the importance of research and technology for the overall European Community/Union, but it has also shown that this potential is not entirely reached, due to lack of integration at the European level or due to insufficient rollout or lack of uniformity of digital policies There are two matters when discussing the impact of digital policies Firstly, we must address the quantitative impact of policies, such as the Digital Single Market, and this is related to the demonstrated contribution of ICTs and the new digital economy on overall development Similarly, the quantitative impact of digitization of other structures of the economy must be considered Secondly, the qualitative impact of the digital policy must be analyzed, considering especially its impact on the overall European integration process The current Juncker Commission has listed the Digital Single Market as one of its ten political priorities, and the Digital Single Market is the flagship initiative of current digital policies The policy document justifies the need for a truly unified Digital Single Market with an assessment that “bringing down these barriers within Europe could contribute an additional EUR 415 billion to European GDP” (European Commission 2015a) Similarly, when listing his political priorities, President Juncker listed the impact of proper digital policies that would “generate up to EUR 250 billion of additional growth in Europe in the course of the mandate of the next Commission, thereby creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs, notably for younger job-seekers, and a vibrantknowledge-based society” (European Commission 2015a) Further efforts for more coordinated policy action and reform are necessary to reach these figures, as well as to sustain the impact of recent Digital Agenda measures that has been calculated at above 1% GDP growth, estimated to reach 3%, provided that reforms are sustained and complemented (European Commission 2015b) E-commerce and especially cross-border e-commerce are the cornerstones of the Digital Single Market, and their quantitative impact is noticeable, especially by looking on an evolutionary basis: “e-Commerce is growing rapidly in the EU at an average annual growth rate of 22%, surpassing €200 billion in 2014 and reaching a share of 7% of total retail sales” (European Commission 2015b) Digitization is another component of the strategic EU digital policies that would bring about further economic benefits to the European Union It covers both integration of digital technologies by European enterprises, as well as harnessing the high-­ tech potential of new innovations like the Internet of Things, cloud computing, or 208 5  Future Perspectives on EU Digital Policy other research in the field According to the EU’s background on digitization, it “will add more than €110 billion of revenue for industry per year in Europe in the next years” (European Commission 2016a) In short, according to the established research on the economic benefits of using digital technologies, the quantitative impact of fully deployed and integrated EU digital policies would amount for major economic growth The listed figures represent a calculated estimation, but, with targeted policies, committed policy-makers, and a smooth implementation process, they could surpass estimations An integrated policy model and more EU supervision of the national level would also help with the foreseen growth In terms of the qualitative impact of digital policies, this is directly related to how digital technologies improve lives of the citizens Firstly, the EU digital policies must also adapt to the changing business models in the economy, which also have the potential to foster economic growth, despite the way in which they challenge the traditional economic models Despite their challenging status, the benefit of collaborative platforms and other types of platforms is that they bring users online and facilitate the users’ lives either with services that are translated in the real space or with services for the digital space The improvement of the citizens’ digital life, as a result of EU digital policies, can be a factor that boosts trust in the EU Combined with a removal of barriers across national state borders, the Digital Single Market, acting as the most important digital policy flagship initiative, is a proper first response for these challenges and has the potential to greatly improve the quality of lives of Europeans Cross-border e-commerce is an important component of the DSM, and its benefits are not only translated in quantitative terms, such as “lower prices increase purchasing power for other goods, increasing demand,” but the analysis of the Commission shows that such benefits “will improve quality of life,” considering that users have a wider range of goods and services to choose from (European Commission 2015b) Another societal impact refers to the consolidation of “Europe’s leading position in the production of cultural goods and services,” due to copyright reform, as well as the regulation to allow the cross-border portability on online content, which would make the content market in Europe more competitive, as well as more accessible Cross-border e-commerce requires a proper regulatory framework to encourage consumers to buy online from another state, but it also requires a trustworthy climate for users to engage in such a behavior, despite their home bias; hence, we find that the Digital Single Market initiative should work in tandem with a proper cybersecurity climate and strategy pursued at the European level to encourage online companies to pursue secure transactions wherein users’ data is protected and confidential For instance, the General Data Protection Regulation has pursued exactly the protection of personal data, in order to provide users the incentives to participate more online and, consequently, to feel safer when making an online purchase In 2016, only 31.8% of the individuals buying goods or services online engaged in cross-border e-commerce (Digital Agenda Data 2016) Regarding the overall objectives of the European Union, digital policies play an important role in socioeconomic cohesion of the European Union, considering that References 209 their aim is to provide a harmonized framework for a properly functioning Digital Economy and Society Currently, the existing digital divides amount to disparities in the digital space that can be replicated in the real space Lack of access to Internet infrastructure is a factor that contributes to lower digital skills for EU citizens, as well as a lack of interest from companies to invest in such areas Digital divides are structural challenges for the European Union, and in some Member States, they can be mitigated using structural funds or cohesion policy funds For instance, Estonia has a project funded by the European Regional Development Fund to increase rural coverage with Internet (European Commission 2017k) Similarly, Poland has EU structural funds available for broadband incentives for operators to invest in lagging areas, as well as funds to improve digital skills (European Commission 2017l) The digital progress reports, as well as the Digital Economy and Society Index, discuss the existing gaps in access, use, and skills of European citizens both intra­EU, as well as within the Member States themselves Hence, sustained convergence measures are necessary both at the EU level to bring the digital skills of Europeans at a more harmonized level, as well as a proper EU regulatory framework to help European growth using the established potential of the digital economy, cross-­ border e-commerce, and content and telecom markets References Brittin M (2015) Google is a growth engine for European business In: Google Eur Blog https:// europe.googleblog.com/2015/02/google-is-growth-engine-for-european.html Accessed Aug 2017 Commission of the European Communities (1994) Europe’s way to the information society http:// aei.pitt.edu/947/1/info_socieity_action_plan_COM_94_347.pdf Accessed 27 Mar 2017 Commission of the 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531/2012 on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/ EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32015R2120&from=EN Accessed 28 Jun 2017 Official Journal of the European Union (2016) Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) Politico (2017) The Uber opinion: what does it mean? http://www.politico.eu/article/the-uberopinion-what-does-it-mean-european-justice-court/ Accessed 17 Jul 2017 The Association of Producers and Distributors of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (2015) Statut [Statute] In: AsociatiaIT http://asociatiait.ro/despre-noi/statut/ Accessed Aug 2017 The Local (2017) European mobile operators brace for end of roaming charges https://www.thelocal.fr/20170611/european-mobile-operators-brace-for-end-of-roaming-charges Accessed Aug 2017 Chapter Conclusions The very beginning of this monograph questioned the necessity for an in-depth look into digital policies in the European Union, considering the unstable climate of the Union that features a migration crisis, the looming reality of Brexit, illiberal democracies, or many other security threats Sixty years after the Treaty of Rome, the European Union is struggling and trying to find its stride, and even its leaders have moved back to the basics in debating the very future of this supranational structure The results of this research amount to a contribution and a proposal for one of the scenarios for the future of the European Union, namely, “doing much more together,” meaning that “Member States decide to share more power, resources, and decision-­ making across the board Decisions are agreed faster at European level and rapidly enforced.” The specific proposal of this research has been to unify and streamline the digital policies of the Union under the umbrella of a specific competence of the Union It would entail a long process of treaty reform, but together with other fields, it would bring Europeans closer to Europe, considering the ubiquitous presence of digital technologies in their daily lives Moreover, technology advances and the European integration process should follow suit and adapt to the changing digital environment Despite the grandness of this point of view, the importance given to digital technologies in the recent present has opened discussion on the future of digital policies and their effect on European citizens Hence, the purpose of this book has been to analyze the major actions of the Union in reference to digital technologies Firstly, it looks at how it has harnessed the potential of the new or digital technologies for socioeconomic gains and the current status of the digital society and economy, using instruments, such as EU statistics Secondly, it looks at the response of the Union to the challenges posed and changes faced by the Union Such examples include the EU programs to promote digitization and the use of the Internet or policies to create a single digital space, to foster the information society, and regulations to protect the growing quantity of personal data available in the digital space or how to protect the digital space © Springer International Publishing AG 2017 M Mărcuț, Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69227-2_6 213 214 6 Conclusions This discussion requires a retrospective look on the evolution of the information society and the approach to the new technologies, and it began by looking at the origins and influence for the Digital Single Market, namely, the Single Market, based on the four freedoms The basic assumption has been that the digital space created by information and communication technologies, namely, the Digital Single Market, is supported by the real space, the Single Market They are both based on the dynamics of the freedom of movement, but they are two different spaces, according to the theoretical point of view posed by Manuel Castells In his multiple research pieces on the topic, he has argued that information and communication technologies (ICTs) create the “space of flows.” Following a theoretical overview of the influence of ICTs in society and economy, the monograph delved into a historical perspective on the information society in the European Community/Union, with a particular focus on the discourse and strategy of the European Commission since the 1980s Using the Jacques Delors archives from the Jean Monnet Foundation for Europe, the research has traced the early signs of a single digital space in speeches and policies put forward by the Delors Commission, which had embarked on a quest to advance the stalling integration process Moreover, early signs of the need to harness new technologies were evident in calls by Jacques Delors to give the research and technological development a European dimension in order to spur on new economic growth Moreover, Delors’ vision on the European Community also included a tight connection between this new policy and the future of the internal market His efforts to advance the internal market and develop a European dimension for technological innovation were the starting point for the discussion on the evolution of the technology policy Despite the fact that the Internet was an emerging technology in the 1980s, Delors called for a single information space for the Community, which, at that point, would entail enhanced cooperation between researchers beyond borders to foster innovation As the technology progressed and the current version of the Internet emerged, the vision of the European institutions developed, up to the point of the current strategy to develop the Digital Single Market The second foundation of the discussion of current digital policies in the European Union refers to the comparative analysis between the Single Market and the Digital Single Market, in order to use the experience of the former to provide lessons and recommendations for the evolution of the latter Their apparent indivisible connection in terms of policy was the starting point of this analysis, but the results of this investigation pointed to a shift of the Digital Single Market from the umbrella of the Single Market The analysis looked at their theoretical construction based on the need for integration and removal of barriers, while it also mapped and compared the types of barriers affecting their evolution The comparative analysis of the barriers used the method of the 1985 White Paper on completing the Internal Market to identify existing physical, technical, and fiscal barriers in the Digital Single Market Similarly, it also looked at the social dimension of these two constructions This analysis concluded that the Digital Single Market is slowly moving away from the umbrella of the Single Market, supporting the same conclusion found when mapping the evolution of the spaces The challenges that the Digital Single 6 Conclusions 215 Market must address in social and economic aspects extend beyond the competences within the internal market policy, and they are illustrated in the different barriers that have to be removed in the digital space, barriers that not only inhibit the creation of a single digital space but also impede the connection between the individuals and the digital space Based on the lessons provided by the evolution of the two spaces, the core of the monograph pursues the analysis of digital policies of the European Union in tandem with the internal market policy Using the established model of the policy cycle and the European Union’s model of the governance of the Single Market, the analysis began by tracking the different policy phases and identified the major actors involved in the digital policy process In this case, we find that the policy decision is scattered across various decision-making levels at the European level, both in the European Commission and in the European Parliament For instance, the Commission has two Commissioners in charge of various digital aspects, while other subordinated directorates within other Commissioner posts deal with various digital aspects, such as security of research and innovation The situation is similar at the Parliament level, and the analysis of the policy formulation and implementation in the Union has revealed the cumbersome and lengthy process to adopt new digital policy instruments, which is caused also by the number of actors involved and the scattered decisional actors Notably, the national actors also feed their expertise into the digital policies proposed, from governmental positions within the Council to another important actor, that is, specific to digital policies, namely, the national regulatory authorities The first thing that separates the digital policies from the single market policy refers to the existence of these regulatory authorities, as well as the type of national interest involved in digital policies According to the analysis of the national decision-making level, Member States tend to want to feed their own expertise and expand it at the national level, while the financial interests are secondary When looking at the interest groups involved in the digital policies, research has found that their prime feature is ambivalence, especially in the case of the biggest interest group identified, the online platforms This is due to their divergent interests in different facets of digital policies From a social point of view, online platforms pursue their own interest to promote digital skills On the other hand, from an economic point of view, their aim is to resist certain changes in copyright or roaming due to the possible economic losses that they would incur In this sense, the preservation of digital barriers is beneficial for them The analysis of the interaction between multiple levels and actors in the digital policy and governance cycles has provided the current model of digital policies in the Union, which is scattered across decision-makers, not entirely harmonized, and which is based on a regulatory framework rather than being left for self-regulation The need for regulation is obvious considering the attempt to weld together the national digital markets Most importantly, the research has identified the lack of an official digital policy of the European Union, considering that it is a horizontal policy stretching across many fields, such as society, economic, administration, health, tourism, culture, education, security, etc 216 6 Conclusions The final pages of the research are dedicated to providing a possible digital policy model for the Union and this is where the contribution to the future of the Union is best felt The digital policy model imagined is split into two, in an attempt to preserve a pragmatic view on future European integration Firstly, we discussed the digital social policies aimed at transforming more and more citizens into users, a model that is based on the tradition of the social policies of the Union, which are fluid and not completely integrated at the European level The reason for such separation is tied to the ambivalence of major technology players from the digital space, due to their interest in social policies focused on advancing digital skills and improving access to technology Their involvement is extremely necessary, considering the fact that they have become the interface between the citizens and access to information and content, even more than the traditional technology companies, like Microsoft Secondly, we approached the idea of an integrated digital policy model, which would be governed mainly at the European level in a structure unifying all the facets of digital: privacy, security, economy, health, etc The integrated model would be solidified by a strengthened European regulatory authority and common rules for copyright and e-commerce across state borders, which transgress the existing set of rules that not go far enough Similarly, considering that the digital space is in constant evolution, the integrated digital policy must be centralized but flexible enough to follow or anticipate future changes For this to happen, the European decision-making level must be supported by experienced expert working groups to help correct current policies and address future challenges This would be a second step in the policy model, after the elimination of socioeconomic disparities in the digital space are addressed properly, as well as the legislation is harmonized The integrated digital policy model also touches the national decision-making level Considering that further integration would mean a transfer of responsibilities at the European level, the national level would be in charge of implementing legislation and following country recommendations issued at the European level, which would be based on the Digital Economy and Society Index The national level can be involved in sharing best practices and creating strategic partnerships between performing states and lagging states Currently, except for the harmonizing regulations, the digital policies are pursued nationally according to the national agenda, but in keeping with the European objectives Finally, the evolution of the Single Market has offered some lessons for the approach toward the digital policies The first lesson of the Single Market is that it is never fully completed and requires constant revision Neither is the Digital Single Market nor, even more than the Single Market, its transformations reach a much more fundamental level, because they challenge the traditional legislation, traditional services, normal face-to-face communication, and interaction between citizens and the state For this, the DSM needs a carefully thought-out policy model that is also flexible However, the most important lesson is that, even if a policy is enshrined in the founding documents of the Union, this does not mean that it will be properly enforced without a collective effort and a proper acknowledgement of the impact of 6 Conclusions 217 the policy If this lesson is applied to the Digital Single Market, we find that there is an acknowledgement of the impact of targeted digital policies, but there is not enough commitment and collective effort to pursue a more concerted digital policy model Recalling the words of Jacques Delors when he promoted the Internal Market program and the next steps for a true European Union, “aide-toi et l’Europe t’aidera” (help yourself and Europe will help you) If all the policy actors recognize the importance pursuing digital policy at a more centralized level, the European level will give back and contribute to socioeconomic development .. .Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy Mirela Mărcuţ Crystalizing the EU Digital Policy An Exploration into the Digital Single Market Mirela Mărcuţ Department of International Relations & European... 1989 at CERN. The European Union identifies this space today as the Digital Single Market In many instances, the Digital Single Market resembles the Single Market, but it is not at the same level... capital, and labor The connection between the Single Market and the Digital Single Market, v vi Preface crystallizing the digital policies of the Union, provides for one of the basic hypotheses of the