Find the most recent information on EU Funding activities in the field of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) by visiting our ICT in FP7 website, which covers ICT in the 7th Framework Programme (FP7) 2007 - 2013.
Introduction
Software, systems and services are at the heart of the knowledge economy and society. They form the basis of a global industry, worth some €74 billion per year in the EU alone and are a major source of innovation and growth. In addition to the software vendor industry itself, they underpin the development of systems, products and services in many other industrial sectors. A competitive European software and service industry will be key to achieving the EU's Lisbon goals of greater competitiveness, sustainability and inclusion.
The ability to compete in software technologies will be even more important in future, as we head towards systems that are not only more intelligent, intuitive and user-friendly, but also ever-more closely embedded in our working and living environment (“ambient intelligence”). Such scenarios will depend on our ability to effectively develop and deploy highly complex software architectures.
This growing reliance on software has created new challenges in software development. Not only is more software needed than ever before, but the requirements are very exacting: interoperability, reliability, security, accessibility and customisation are all key considerations. Hence, the demands placed on the software engineering community - to quickly develop new products with flexibility, robustness and quality - have also increased.
Open source software has sparked innovative new business models for both software and services, with new players competing by adding value or providing new services. European software developers can exploit these capabilities to gain competitive advantage.
This brochure describes IST research on Software Technologies, showing the integrated nature of European research in this domain. It presents profiles of specific research areas holding a promising future, together with selected project descriptions to exemplify and illustrate key on-going research and technology development.
IST's research on software technologies aims to support the competitive position of the European software industry (notably SMEs) in more globalised and service-oriented markets. It is seeking solutions to improve the productivity of the software development process, master complexity and support the drive towards ambient intelligence. Research will provide the next generation of open and interoperable platforms, methodologies, middleware, standards and tools to easily create and deploy new types of software, systems and services.
The brochure is one of six in The Networked Future series, describing European funded research for Network and Communication Technologies.
| View of download the complete brochure (PDF, 715KB) |
 |
| Read or download the General brochure (PDF, 1.644KB) |
 |
This book is one of a series of six which correspond to the six strategic objectives:
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Paper copies | A limited number of printed copies are available (the pack includes the introduction and all six specific booklets). If you wish to receive copies please send us an email mentioning the key word INFSO.D Brochure, the number of copies and the address. |