Bringing IT home: ESPRIT programme seeks a new way to use computers
On 17 September 1996, the European Commission, DG III, published a call for proposals for the Community's specific RTD programme in the field of information technologies (ESPRIT)(OJ No S 180 of 17.9.1996 p. 42). Under this call, up to ECU 18 million ECU will be provided for a radically new research initiative on "intelligent information interfaces" (i3) launched by ESPRIT's Long Term Research unit. The aim of the i3 (pronounced i-cubed) initiative is to find effective new ways for ordinary people to use information technology. As we approach the next century, people are encountering a growing number of information systems, devices and services. If these are to be used naturally and effectively by the broad range of people in their everyday lives (and not just the specialist few), it is vital to find usable, acceptable and effective ways of interacting with these systems and services. Stepping away from the technology-focused approach of the past, i3 considers human, societal and technological factors together in the development of new solutions. These will aim to engage people as active participants in the creation and use of information, rather than viewing them as passive recipients of pre-packaged or broadcast information. i3 also marks a breakthrough in ESPRIT funding practice as it calls for research on two competing visions of the future. These visions were arrived at through a competition, held earlier this year, which asked for new ideas on how people could interact with information or each other using technology as a medium. "Connected Community", the first of these visions, focuses on developing new tools that will promote the sharing of knowledge and experience between people in local communities or neighbourhoods. It boldly rejects virtual reality as the solution to future communication but rather suggests ways of enhancing real-life links between ordinary people. It seeks to build upon the real-world characteristics of communities to promote new forms of interactivity. The second vision, "Inhabited Information Spaces", aims to develop virtual information spaces in which people who may be geographically dispersed can interact with each other and with information sources and services. People, representations of people and information agents interact within a common environment. The spaces may range from purely virtual cyberspaces through to real world ones augmented by technology. They have the potential to enable new forms of meaningful collective interaction on a global scale. In the long term, the results of this radical research initiative will feed back into commercially available systems, but the goal at this stage is to encourage new thinking and new approaches in the development of new technologies. With the i3 initiative, ESPRIT is hoping to attract applications from enterprises that would not normally become involved in IT research. The i3 initiative is seeking project proposals from organizations throughout Europe. Applications will be evaluated by an expert panel and it is expected that projects will start in early 1997. An information package containing all the information necessary to submit a proposal is available on request. For further information, please contact: European Commission DG III - Industry Information and Communications Office 200 rue de la Loi B-1049 Brussels Tel. +32-2-2966549; Fax +32-2-2991926 European Commission DG III - Industry Mr. Jakub Wejchert ESPRIT Programme - Long Term Research 200 rue de la Loi B-1049 Brussels Tel. +32-2-2968032; Fax +32-2-2968390 E-mail: Jakub.Wejchert@dg3.cec.be Information is also available on the CORDIS WWW server at: http://cordis.europa.eu/esprit/src/eyecall.htm