Key Enabling Technologies (Communication)

Dr. Götz Reichert, LL.M.

Prof. Dr. Jan S. Voßwinkel

The Commission identifies six key enabling technologies (KET) which are essential for the EU’s economy and presents a strategy on how the EU and Member States could better coordinate KET funding and use it more efficiently. The proposed measures are aimed at the technology development stages following basic research (technological research, product demonstration, competitive manufacturing activities). Thus the gap between basic KET knowledge generation and its commercialisation into goods and services is to be closed.

cepPolicyBrief

In view of the fact that the EU’s funding policy is not very systematic, it is at least positive that subsidies are to be better coordinated and deployed more efficiently. However, the more one moves away from supporting basic research, the more the funding of key enabling technologies distorts competition. The planned promotion of competitive manufacturing activities goes too far in economic terms, exceeds the competencies of the EU and infringes the EU state aid prohibition.

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Key Enabling Technologies COM(2012) 341 (publ. 06.20.2014)	PDF	103 KB	Download