New figures from the European Commission’s Digital Economy and Society Index have revealed the steps needed to move forward as Europe goes digital
New figures published by the European Commission’s Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) have revealed the necessary progress required for moving towards a digital Europe. There are plenty of digital opportunities waiting to be unlocked to benefit European citizens and companies. From shopping or studying online, to paying bills or using public services over the Internet – the Web is the answer, if the right conditions are in place. This is the conclusion of the new Digital Economy and Society Index developed by the European. Data shows that the picture of how digital countries are varies across the EU and that borders remain an obstacle to a fully-fledged Digital Single Market – one of the top priorities of the Juncker Commission.
The new tool presented gives snapshots, per country, of connectivity (how widespread, fast and affordable broadband is), Internet skills, the use of online activities from news to shopping, how key digital technologies (e-invoices, cloud services, e-commerce, etc) and digital public services such as e-government and e-health are developed. The data is mostly from 2013 and 2014 and gives an overview of how digital Europe is, including rankings of the top digital performers.
There is a number of main findings of the Digital Economy and Society Index.
Digital experience
Digital experience depends on the country – as performance varies from digital top players such as Denmark (0.68 digital performance score out of 1) to lower-performance countries such as Romania (0.31 digital performance score).
Internet
A majority of Europeans use the Internet on a regular basis: 75% in 2014 (72% in 2013), ranging from 93% in Luxembourg to 48% in Romania. Europeans are eager to access audiovisual content online: 49% of Europeans who go online have played or downloaded games, images, films or music. 39% of households that have a TV watch video on demand.
Business
Small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) face barriers with e-commerce: only 15% of SMEs sell online – and of that 15%, fewer than half do so across borders.
Public services
Digital public services are an everyday reality in some countries but almost non-existent in others: 33% of European Internet users have used online forms to send information to public authorities, ranging from 69% in Denmark to 6% in Romania. 26% of general practitioners in Europe use e-prescriptions to transfer prescriptions to pharmacists over the Internet, but this varies from 100% in Estonia to 0% in Malta.
Digital single market
Andrus Ansip, Vice-President for the Digital Single Market, said the figures show Europe is going digital, and Europeans enjoying great new services. “The vast majority of Europeans are going online: citizens want to access online content, we need to make it easier for them. A Digital Single Market can give them wider access, help businesses innovate and grow, and boost trust in online services like e-government or banking. The European Commission will help make it happen.”
According to Günther H. Oettinger, Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society, the Digital Index showed how radically people have changed the way they watch films: they still follow their favorite series on TV but a considerable number – 40% – also watches video on demand and films online. The Commissioner added there was a requirement to adapt to citizens’ needs and therefore adapting policy.
The Digital Index is particularly relevant as the European Commission prepares its Digital Single Market strategy, to be unveiled in May 2015. The strategy aims to create the right conditions for European citizens and companies to make better use of the great opportunities of digital technology across borders. By creating a Digital Single Market, Europe can generate up to €250 billion in additional growth, and hundreds of thousands of new jobs, in the next five years.
Performance and competitiveness
The Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) is a composite index that summarizes relevant indicators on Europe’s digital performance and tracks the evolution of EU member states in digital competitiveness. It combines more than 30 indicators and uses a weighting system to rank each country based on its digital performance. It is the analytical tool providing the raw material for the rollout of the Digital Single Market strategy.
To calculate a country’s overall score, each set and subset of indicators were given a specific weighting by European Commission experts. Connectivity and digital skills (‘human capital’), considered as foundations of the digital economy and society, each contribute 25% to the total score (maximum digital performance score is 1). Integration of digital technology accounts for 20%, since the use of ICT by the business sector is one of the most important drivers of growth. Finally, online activities (‘use of Internet’) and digital public services each contribute 15%. The DESI online tool is flexible and allows users to experiment with different weightings for each indicator and see how this impacts overall rankings.
The DESI includes five main dimensions:
- Connectivity measures the deployment of broadband infrastructure and its quality. Access to fast broadband-enabled services is a necessary condition for competitiveness.
- Human Capital measures the skills needed to take advantage of the possibilities offered by a digital society. Such skills go from basic user skills that enable individuals to interact online and consume digital goods and services, to advanced skills that empower the workforce to take advantage of technology for enhanced productivity and economic growth.
- Use of Internet accounts for the variety of activities performed by citizens already online. Such activities range from consumption of online content (videos, music, games, etc.) to modern communication activities or online shopping and banking.
- Integration of Digital Technology measures the digitisation of businesses and their exploitation of the online sales channel. By adopting digital technology businesses can enhance efficiency, reduce costs and better engage customers, collaborators and business partners. Furthermore, the Internet as a sales outlet offers access to wider markets and potential for growth .
- Digital Public Services measures the digitisation of public services, and focuses in particular on eGovernment and eHealth. Modernisation and digitisation of public services, including eHealth, can lead to efficiency gains for the public administration, citizens and businesses alike as well as to the delivery of better services for the citizen.
The new data included in the DESI will contribute to the Digital Agenda Scoreboard, which the European Commission publishes annually to assess how countries are progressing towards the targets set in the Digital Agenda for Europe. The next Digital Agenda Scoreboard report is expected in summer 2015.
by DESI, European Commission