INFORMATION SOCIETY: GERMAN INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE BROADBAND.

• Position: Brief Article

The European Commissioner for the Information Society, Erkki Liikanen, and German Chancellor Gerhard Schr?der attended a high-level meeting on May 8 in Berlin within the framework of a German initiative aimed at fostering growth of the information society. The meeting emphasised the importance of broadband internet as the essential infrastructure for the use of rich applications and services, improving the functionality, performance and accessibility of online public services and enabling a dynamic e-business environment.

Also present at the meeting were the members of the German "Initiative D21", which aims at better exploiting the opportunities offered by the Information Society in terms of competitiveness, growth and employment. 'D21' stands for Germany in the 21st Century -...