I held this presentation on IT Policy in Europe 2010-2013: The Imperative of Walking the Talk on Openness at the European Commission today. Walking the talk on openness means real measures to push open standards-based interoperability across the European value chain—in all verticals.

1. <Insert Picture Here>
IT Policy in Europe 2010-2013: The Imperative of Walking
the Talk on Openness
Trond Arne Undheim, Ph.D.
Director of Standards Strategy and Policy EMEA
i2010 unit, DG INFSO, Brussels, 12 March 2009.

2. <Insert Picture Here>
Jonathan Zittrain
“DG” Oxford and Harvard
“The internet’s generative
characteristics primed it for
extraordinary success—and now
position it for failure”
The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It, Penguin, 2008.

3. <Insert Picture Here>
Viviane Reding
DG INFSO
“Dominant players may try to use
proprietary standards to lock
consumers into their products or to
extract very high royalties, ultimately
stifling innovation and foreclosing
market entry by new players.”
Speech at Lisbon Council, 2 Feb 2009.

4. <Insert Picture Here>
Neelie Kroes
DG COMPETITION
“Opting for open standards is a very
wise business decision indeed”
OFE Breakfast, 10 June 2008.

5. <Insert Picture Here>
Famous person
Reputable institution
“The Impact of interoperable ICT
solutions on the internal market and the
European economy are formidable and
have not only brought us out of the
recession but have spurred a new era of
individual, regional and global growth”
Somewhere in Europe, 2013.

6. How ICT Shapes The Overall Economy
Companies say:
• Top-line growth, not cost savings, is the primary goal.
• “Communicate, communicate, communicate,”
• The companies that are farthest along in their global
initiatives tend to have a multiplicity of systems, few of
which work seamlessly together.
Source: Leveraging the power of global innovation (February 2009). Briefing paper by The
Economist Intelligence Unit, sponsored by Oracle. Available at: http://www.eiu
.com/site_info.asp?info_name=oracle_globalinnovation&page=noads&rf=0

7. Every IT System Needs An Integration Architecture
Applications Technology
Enterprise
Enterprise
Manufacturing Performance
Industries Management
Retail Identity
Management
Content
Comms
Management
Middleware
Management
Banking
Database
Insurance
Utilities
Systems
Management
Others

8. Standardization is a tool to
grapple with globalization
Standardization sets you free
(as SME, individual, government or vertical industry)

9. ICT is the Top Growth Factor Across Verticals
• Retail
• Communications
• Financial Services
• Professional Services
• Public Sector
• …because of the powerful
network externalities/spill-
over effects

10. Technology Trends in the Software Industry
…are subject to rapid co-evolution with government,
business, customer and consumer demands.
• Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)
• Cloud Computing
• From Web 2.0 to Business 2.0
• Next Generation of the Web (NGW)
• …and standardization and software are inseparable.

11. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)
• Services = software building blocks w/open standards
• Interface exists independently of the implementation.
• Can be built, used and reused upon need.
• Integrate across heterogeneous platforms and
applications (HR, CRM, Financial management,
Supply chain).
• It is not done: customers ask: How do I get to SOA?
SOA http://www.oracle.com/technologies/soa/index.html

12. Cloud Computing
• Increasingly web-based computing environment.
• Commercial lock-in strategies remain the same.
• Makes IT infrastructure more elastic (scale up/down).
• Pricing model still undefined.
• Future business/government use to be seen.
• Few open standards exist.
Cloud Computing http://www.oracle.com/technology/tech/cloud/index.html

13. From Web 2.0 to Business 2.0
• Wikis, blogs, and mash-ups within the organization.
• Leadership from below, management as attitude to
lead, not as position in a hierarchy.
• Known entities are communicating.
• Applications need to be secure and interoperable.
• Feedback emerges in-house and from the outside.
See http://www.leadershipfrombelow.com/

14. Next Generation of the Web (NGW)
• Political will to maintain openness by open standards?
• Semantic technologies (XML, RDF, OWL, etc.), that
leverage AI and metadata.
– Typical business use: search, Web services, grid computing,
and content management/compliance. Soon much more!
– Example: Intelligent internet search: “yacht racing” would
yield America's cup results.
• IPv6 will improve the performance of the Internet.
– Currently 1 percent penetration. Needs global scale.

15. <Insert Picture Here>
Vint Cerf
Father of the Internet
“The Internet is fundamentally based
on the existence of open, non-
proprietary standards.”

16. Future-proof IT policy for the EU? Top 10 Elements
1 6
Safeguard the open Internet platform Strong partner ecosystem
2 7
Seed capital to innovating SMEs Argue efficiency & effectiveness
3 8
Prove end-user value Make the vision understandable
4 9
Push growth through verticals Embed e-participation
5 10
Secure open standards across Europe Aim for selective global leadership

17. From i2010 to E-Union?
• From Web 2.0 to • Interoperability of the
Business 2.0. Internal Market.
• Standards Education • European software
strategy.
Market access
• Strategic Programme R&D for IT
• Keeping the Internet
on Standardization in applications across sectors
Middleware & open.
Applications. • Attract talent to EU.
• Climate change apps 2013
• IT Procurement • Migration strategy for
policy compliance. Member States (and
Interoperability
Open e-government e-Commission).
• Communication on (Open standards)
• Launch of real Pan-
EIF 2.0 with ex ante
assurances and/or European services
default royalty free. (from legacy systems
• Recognition of fora/ to open standards).
consortia in EU law. • E-participation.

18. The Open Internet
<Insert Picture Here>
• Safeguard the principles that have served us well.
• Watch new developments, actors, business models.
• Ensure fresh open standards develop and thrive.

19. European Software Strategy
• Recognize fora/consortia.
• Seed capital to innovative SMEs who interoperate.
• Disperse standards education and travel funds.
• Start IT procurement compliance watch.
• Launch strategic R&D programmes on SOA.

20. Open e-government
• Open up government content—let all make use of it.
• Foster policy alignment with benchmarks.
• Launch a set of large scale Pan-European e-services
(social services, tax)…underpinned by eID.
Deeply embed e-participation in the structure.
•
Use standardization as a tool to grapple with
•
globalization.
Launch IT migration strategy for Member States (and
•
e-Commission).
Co-evolve all IT strategy through epractice.eu
•
(mandatory passage points, innovation jams).

21. Framework Directive:
Interoperability & Innovation
<Insert Picture Here>
• Emphasize multi-sector interoperability effects.
• Set minimum expectations for standards compliance.
• Measure IT innovation effects across the economy.
.

22. Let’s do the math
Interoperability
=
Open standards

23. Let’s do the math
Open standards
+
Wide implementation
=
Good Business

24. Characteristics of Open Standards
Cannot be controlled by vested interests
•
Transparent evolution process
•
Platform independent, vendor neutral
•
Openly published
•
Available royalty free or at minimal cost (with field of
•
use and defensive suspension on RAND terms)
Approved through due process, rough consensus
•
Source: Roadmap for Open ICT Ecosystems, Harvard, 2005
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/epolicy/

25. The Benefits of Open Standards
Innovate Better products New technology
Transparency Avoid lock-in Market stability
Market access Economic growth Reduce costs
Source: The Momentum of Open Standards - a Pragmatic Approach to Software Interoperability
The European Journal of ePractice, No.5, 2008 [http://www.epracticejournal.eu/document/5156]

26. To which a certain industry player may ask
Who
•
What
•
Why
•
Where
•
When?
•

27. Open Standards Enhance Innovation
• Who?
– UC Berkeley economist Hal Varian in Information Rules.
– European Commission funded FLOSSIMPACT study.
– UC Berkeley sociologist Neil Fliegstein in Architecture of M.
• What?
– Innovation is whatever action an organization values highly.
• Why?
– Enables sustainable innovation on top of agreed platform.
• Where?
– In every well-functioning market – supported by institutions.
• When?
– Whenever standards create new business (PDF, ODF, XML).
– The Internet itself is the best example (HTTP, TCP/IP).

28. Open Standards Avoid Lock-in
• Who?
– Repeated attempts at platform monopoly.
– All other software players work against this practice.
• What?
– Collaborative interfaces between technologies.
• Why?
– Unsustainable in the long run. Hurts markets. Unfair.
• Where?
– Developed in 500+ consortia – W3C and Oasis.
• When?
– Whenever competing standards are avoided.

29. Open Standards Reduce Costs
• Who?
– Industry analysts like AMR, Forrester, Gartner, & IDC agree.
– 1/3 of an average IT budget is spent on integration.
• What?
– Standards drastically reduce integration costs.
• Why?
– Business standards are unorganized. Too many, too
complex.
• Where?
– Our acquisition of BEA systems – integrate, don’t shut down.
– Oracle Fusion Middleware – connecting technology pieces.
• When?
– Whenever businesses must collaborate. All business should.

30. The Openness Continuum
W3C OASIS ISO Open Social Single-vendor
ODF Flash OOXML DocX

31. Government Paved The Path Towards Openness
Adobe (PDF) PDF/A ISO (PDF) 3rd party implementations
imgres
Adobe: “government demand played a part”

32. The Ideal Software Standards Ecosystem
• Healthy • Certainty
process • Late disclosure as
Royalty free Disclosed ex ante
• Non-RF as the the exception
exception
Open
Global
• Wide implementation
• Actual interoperability

33. <Insert Picture Here>
Trond Arne Undheim, Ph.D.
Oracle Corporation
“In the software business, supporting
open standards is the best way to
ensure interoperability. The result is
lasting innovation effects, across the
economy, in all markets“
Trond’s Opening Standard http://blogs.oracle.com/trond

34. Walking the talk on
openness means real
measures to push open
standards-based
interoperability across the
European value chain—in
all verticals.

35. Bibliography
• Cloud Computing http://www.oracle.com/technology/tech/cloud/index.html
• Europe http://www.oracle.com/global/eu/oracle-europe/index.html
• EU R&D http://www.oracle.com/global/eu/rd/index.html
• SOA http://www.oracle.com/technologies/soa/index.html
• Standards http://www.oracle.com/technologies/standards/index.html
• Trond’s Opening Standard http://blogs.oracle.com/trond
• White Papers http://www.oraclewhitepapers.com/