Friday, 14th September 2012 – Brussels - The adoption of the European Standardisation package by the European Parliament on 11 September has been applauded by the ICT industry.

The European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of the text, which includes an important innovation for the ICT domain. The agreed regulation enables the direct referencing of ICT technical specifications developed by industry fora and consortia, not only in European policies, but also in public procurement tenders.

This is a decisive step forward compared to the previous standardisation framework where public entities were allowed to make explicit reference exclusively to standards agreed by formal standardisation bodies.

“The possibility of directly referencing ICT technical specifications is extremely important for the digital industry” said Klaus-Dieter Axt, Director Public Affairs, DIGITALEUROPE. “ICT technologies are based to a large extent on specifications developed by fora and consortia, which are globally available (such as Internet and Wi Fi),” he continued. Direct referencing of these specifications will further promote interoperability between ICT products and increase competition, innovation and freedom of choice for customers.

“The new regulation represents a milestone for the future of European standardisation, especially in the field of ICT, says Axt, adding, ”I am convinced that European stakeholders, including the European ICT industry represented by DIGITALEUROPE will greatly benefit from the results of this thorough process”.

Following the adoption by the European Parliament the regulation will require formal adoption by the European Council to finalise the 1st reading/single reading agreement. The Council’s vote is expected in the coming weeks.

Media Enquiries:

Natalia KUROP

DIGITALEUROPE, Director Communication & Marketing

T. +32 2 609 53 26 >> F. +32 2 609 53 39 >> M. +32 487 34 05 71 >> E. natalia.kurop@digitaleurope.org

ABOUT DIGITALEUROPE

DIGITALEUROPE (www.digitaleurope.org), is the voice of the European digital technology industry. Our membership includes large and small companies in the Information and Communications Technology and Consumer Electronics Industry sectors. DIGITALEUROPE membership is composed of 61 major multinational companies and 41 national associations from 29 European countries. In all, DIGITALEUROPE represents more than 10,000 companies all over Europe with more than 2 million employees and over EUR 1,000 billion in revenues.