Samtidigt skapas nya möjligheter för tjänster, medier och kulturell mångfald i hela EU.
Ändringsförslagen behandlar bland annat vikten av att leda utvecklingen i bredband- och Internetutveckling, både för att behålla en stark europeisk konkurrenskraft på området men också för en långsiktig europeisk sammanhållning.
Vidare är det viktigt att fastslå att den teknologiska konvergensen, som redan i hög grad är ett faktum, möjliggör för traditionella tjänster att nå ut på nya sätt. Delar av det frekvensutrymme som tidigare reserverats för tv-sändningar kan därför möjliggöra framväxten av nya tjänster vid sidan av digitala tv-sändningar av hög kvalitet. Något som dock förutsätter ett så effektivt hanterande av det nya utrymmet som möjligt.
Läs Gunnar Hökmarks ändringsförslag i sin helhet nedan:
(-1) Notes that most EU member states today are lagging behind other developed countries regarding investment in new generation communication infrastructures, and stresses that achieving leadership in broadband and Internet development is crucial for the competitiveness and cohesion of Europe in the international arena, especially for what concerns the development of interactive digital platforms and the provision of new services such as e-trade, e-health, e-learning and e-government services,
(2a) Observes that an efficient allocation of the digital dividend may be achieved without hampering any of the players that currently hold spectrum licenses in the UHF band, and that the continuation and expansion of current broadcasting services can be effectively achieved, at the same time securing that new mobile multimedia and broadband wireless access technologies are allocated substantial spectrum resources in the UHF band to bring new interactive services to European citizens.
(2b) Emphasises the greater efficiency of digital broadcasting, enabling more channels and potentially higher quality to be delivered using less spectrum, allowing enhanced broadcast services while at the same time freeing up spectrum for new services that can bring benefits to citizens and consumers; considers the market is best placed to determine the services and technologies of most benefit to society,
(2c) Is convinced that new multi-play packages, containing innovative technologies and services, may soon be offered due to increased technological convergence, and at the same time observes that the emergence of these offers crucially depends on the availability of valuable spectrum as well as of new interactive technologies enabling seamless interoperability, connectivity and coverage, such as mobile multimedia technologies and broadband wireless access technologies,
(2d) Underlines that the digital dividend provides a unique opportunity for Europe to develop its role as world leader in mobile multimedia technologies and at the same time bridge the digital divide with an increased flow of information, knowledge and services connecting all European citizens with each other and providing new opportunities for media, culture and diversity in all areas of the territory of the Union.
(4a) Stresses that such a unique opportunity must be reaped as soon as possible, if Europe wants to achieve world leadership in new interactive digital platforms and realise the information society for all, as envisaged by the i2010 strategy, and that such need may require active cooperation between member states to overcome current obstacles existing at national level in the efficient (re)allocation of the digital dividend.
(4b) emphasizes the benefits of Member States releasing their digital dividends as quickly as possible in order to enable European citizens and consumers to take advantage of new, innovative and competitive services; notes in particular that some countries have already switched to digital broadcasting and/or identified their digital dividend.
(5) Is in favour of technology-neutral auctions for the purpose of allocating frequencies that are liberated because of the digital dividend and making those frequencies tradable; warns, however, of spectrum fragmentation which leads to the sub-optimal use of scarce resources; calls on the Commission to ensure that a common approach to the use of spectrum will not create new barriers to future innovation.
(5a) Calls for close cooperation among Member States to achieve an efficient, open and competitive European single market by identifying common spectrum bands for the development of new pan-European services and for securing sufficient scale for the deployment of new network technologies