TEN-Telecom'96: Open consultation process
The European Commission, DG XIII, is inviting all interested parties in the European Union to provide comments on its Trans-European Telecommunications Networks work programme for 1996 (TEN-Telecom'96). This open consultation process will be followed by a call for proposals to be announced in the Official Journal of the European Communities in March 1996. The implementation of trans-European networks, and in particular of telecommunication networks, is an essential condition for the operation of the Single Market, the strengthening of the Union's economic and social cohesion, and the establishment of the Information Society. The convergence of information and telecommunication technologies and industries, together with the liberalization of the telecommunications sector, create enormous opportunities for the take-off of new networks, applications and services. In order to take full advantage of these opportunities, all interested parties in Europe need to mobilize their investment resources and their capacity for innovation. The Community plays an important role, as set out in Title XII of the Treaty, in supporting these developments by helping to stimulate the launch of innovative project initiatives and, in certain cases, by providing financial support, in accordance with community competition rules, to projects responding to socio-economic needs. The main purpose of the proposed TEN-Telecom'96 work programme is to select the areas in which projects of common interest can be proposed, and to establish the basis for the 1996 call for proposals in this area. The open consultation process is aimed at assisting the Commission in finalising the 1996 work programme and, in particular, in selecting the priority areas for projects of common interest. Interested organizations may submit their comments to this programme either electronically or by mail.