Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are critical for creating jobs and improving quality of life across Europe.

Although the ICT sector is itself worth 6-8% of the EU's GDP, it's importance goes well beyond that - ICT is also vital to:

• meeting the globalization challenge by boosting innovation, creativity and competitiveness throughout the economy;
• delivering cutting-edge science in all scientific and technological areas;
• making Europe's large public sector more efficient, and modernising sectors ranging from education to energy;
• tackling social challenges, improving quality of life and meeting the challenge of an ageing society.

ICT research is one of the key themes of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for Research and Technological Development, which will fund research across Europe from 2007-2013.

EU research funding is deliberately focused on seven key Research Challenges to ensure Europe becomes a world leader in ICT.

Three Challenges are aimed at industrial leadership in key ICT sectors, while four are driven by socio-economic targets. Within each Challenge, the Programme will fund an array of collaborative research projects, each of which bring together public and private organisations from across Europe to help the EU pool its scientific, industrial, financial and human resources. Small and medium-sized enterprises are actively encouraged due to their vital role in innovation and economic growth.

Research partnerships will also be forged with advanced and developing countries, supporting European competitiveness and helping international development.

Three ICT challenges have been identified with the help of the European Technology Platforms in ICT and are as follows:

• The converged communication and service Infrastructure that will gradually replace the current Internet, mobile, fixed and audiovisual networks.
• The engineering of more robust, context-aware and easy-to-use ICT systems that self-improve and self-adapt within their respective environments.
• The increasingly smaller, cheaper, more reliable and low consumption electronic components and systems that constitute the basis for innovation in all major products and services.

Four challenges for ICT research are driven by socio-economic goals and are in line with the flagship initiatives of i2010:

• Digital libraries, knowledge and content development tools and applications that will help us preserve, develop and disseminate our cultural assets, improve our learning and education systems and strengthen the creativity of our society.
• ICT tools for sustainable Health systems enhancing our ability to monitor our health and well-being and to treat major illnesses and diseases.
• Intelligent and safe vehicles and technologies for environmental sustainability and energy efficiency that are key requirements of citizens.
• ICT systems and applications for better inclusion and independent living of all citizens.

 In addition to the seven Challenges, a Future and Emerging Technologies activity will continue to foster trans-disciplinary research excellence in emerging ICT-related research domains.

As well as addressing today's challenges, the ICT Theme also looks further ahead, complementing the Challenges with long-term, high-risk, ‘purpose-driven' research.

Known as Future and Emerging Technologies (FET), the idea is to support pioneering research with a high potential for significant breakthroughs. This is the type of research that could potentially become tomorrow's radical new innovations - the sort of work that opens up entirely new markets.

FET will therefore explore radical interdisciplinary avenues, delivering proofs-of-concept for new options and demonstrating new possibilities. It will strengthen Europe's science and technology base in new and emerging areas, refine new visions to the point where they attract industrial investment, and establish new interdisciplinary research communities within European science and industry.

Want to know more ?

• Download the Work Programme for the period 2011-2012 which provides the detailed priorities for ICT FP7 Calls for Proposals to be launched
• FP7 programme website: http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/home_en.html
• FP7-ICT programme website: http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ict/home_en.html