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OpenForum Europe | |
Established | 2002 |
---|---|
Founders | Graham Taylor, Basil Cousins, Robert Blatchford |
Type | Non-profit Think Tank |
Focus | Open source software, European Digital policy |
Headquarters | Brussels, Belgium |
Chairperson | Sachiko Muto |
Executive Director | Astor Nummelin Carlberg |
Website | www |
OpenForum Europe (OFE) is a European open source software and open standard not-for-profit think tank. Its key objective is to contribute to achieve an open and competitive digital ecosystem in Europe. Based in Brussels, it launched its operations in 2002 and currently conducts research on topics such as Open Source, Open standards, Digital Government, public procurement, Intellectual Property, cloud computing and Internet policy. [1] Founded by Graham Taylor, Basil Cousins and Robert Blatchford, [2] the current executive director is Astor Nummelin Carlberg.
OFE is a registered interest group with the European Commission and the European Parliament. [3] OFE advises European policymakers and legislators on the merits of openness in computing and provides technical analysis and explanation. OFE promotes open source software, as well as openness more generally, as part of a vision to facilitate open, competitive choice for technology users.
OFE works closely with the European Commission, European Parliament, national and local governments both directly and via its national partners. It follows five openness objectives to help direct its work : User centricity, Competition, Flexibility, Sustainability, and Community. [4]
In 2021, OFE, in collaboration with Fraunhofer ISI, conducted a study on the impact of open source software and hardware on technological independence, competitiveness, and innovation in Europe for the European Commission. [5]
Started in 2015, OFE organises the EU Open Source Policy Summit. [6] Started as just a few people workshop, its 2022 edition gathered 600 participants and 38 speakers. [7] Topics tackled during the sessions at the Summit included: public sector’s capacity in Open Source, Open Source Software security, Economics of Open Source and supporting the green transition through Open Source solutions.
OpenForum Academy is an independent programme established by OpenForum Europe with the aim to create a link between academias and policymaker. In order to provide new input and insight into the key issues which impact the openness of the IT market, the programme gathers researchers from various countries. [8]
Technology governance means the governance, i.e., the steering between the different sectors—state, business, and NGOs—of the development of technology. It is the idea of governance within technology and its use, as well as the practices behind them. The concept is based on the notion of innovation and of techno-economic paradigm shifts according to the theories by scholars such as Joseph A. Schumpeter, Christopher Freeman, and Carlota Perez.
Free and open-source software (FOSS) is software that is available under a license that grants the right to use, modify, and distribute the software, modified or not, to everyone free of charge. The public availability of the source code is, therefore, a necessary but not sufficient condition. FOSS is an inclusive umbrella term for free software and open-source software. FOSS is in contrast to proprietary software, where the software is under restrictive copyright or licensing and the source code is hidden from the users.
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The European Research Area (ERA) is a system of scientific research programs integrating the scientific resources of the European Union (EU). Since its inception in 2000, the structure has been concentrated on European cooperation in the fields of medical, environmental, industrial, and socioeconomic research. The ERA can be likened to a research and innovation equivalent of the European "common market" for goods and services. Its purpose is to increase the competitiveness of European research institutions by bringing them together and encouraging a more inclusive way of work, similar to what already exists among institutions in North America and Japan. Increased mobility of knowledge workers and deepened multilateral cooperation among research institutions among the member states of the European Union are central goals of the ERA.
The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the European Research Area (ERA). Starting in 2014, the funding programmes were named Horizon.
Microsoft Corp. v. Commission is a case brought by the European Commission of the European Union (EU) against Microsoft for abuse of its dominant position in the market. It started as a complaint from Sun Microsystems over Microsoft's licensing practices in 1993, and eventually resulted in the EU ordering Microsoft to divulge certain information about its server products and release a version of Microsoft Windows without Windows Media Player. The European Commission especially focused on the interoperability issue.
The Futures Industry Association (FIA) is a prominent global trade organization that represents the interests of the futures, options, and derivatives markets, including futures commission merchants and principal traders. Founded in 1955, the FIA has played a crucial role in shaping the futures industry, advocating for market participants, and fostering the growth of these markets worldwide. With a diverse membership comprising exchanges, clearinghouses, trading firms, banks, and other industry stakeholders, the FIA acts as a unified voice for the futures industry.
The United States National Academy of Sciences' Board on Science, Technology, and Economic Policy (STEP) is a board of the United States National Academy of Sciences.
The Human Brain Project (HBP) was a €1-billion EU scientific research project that ran for ten years from 2013 to 2023. Using high-performance exascale supercomputers it built infrastructure that allowed researchers to advance knowledge in the fields of neuroscience, computing and brain-related medicine. Its successor was the EBRAINS project.
A technological revolution is a period in which one or more technologies is replaced by another novel technology in a short amount of time. It is a time of accelerated technological progress characterized by innovations whose rapid application and diffusion typically cause an abrupt change in society.
Atomium – European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy (EISMD) is an international non-profit organisation based in Brussels. The Institute convenes European universities, media, global businesses, governments and policymakers to develop innovative initiatives and frontier thinking based on scientific evidence to provide evidence-based analysis and advice in governmental and decision-making processes.
Michelangelo Baracchi Bonvicini has been president of Atomium - European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy, since its launch with the former French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing on the 27th November 2009 at the European Parliament.
The European Aerospace Cluster Partnership (EACP) is a permanent partnership between collaborating European aerospace clusters. The consortium currently comprises 45 aerospace clusters from 18 different countries and was initiated by the city of Hamburg in 2009 and co-funded by the European Commission.
On 6 May 2015, the European Commission, led at the time by Jean-Claude Juncker, established the Digital Single Market strategy, intended to remove virtual borders, boost digital connectivity, and make it easier for consumers to access cross-border online content across the European Union. The Digital Single Market, which is one of the Commission's 10 political priorities, aims to fit the EU's single market for the digital age, moving from 28 national digital markets to a single one, and then opening up digital services to all citizens and strengthen business competitiveness in the digital economy. In other words, the Digital Single Market is a market characterized by ensuring the free movement of people, services and capital and allowing individuals and businesses to seamlessly access and engage in online activities irrespective of their nationality or place of residence. Fair competition conditions and a high level of protection of personal and consumer data are applied.
Nextcloud is a suite of client-server software for creating and using file hosting services. Nextcloud provides functionality similar to Dropbox, Office 365 or Google Drive when used with integrated office suites Collabora Online or OnlyOffice. It can be hosted in the cloud or on-premises. It is scalable, from home office software based on the low cost Raspberry Pi, all the way through to full sized data centers that support millions of users. Translations in 60 languages exist for web interface and client applications.
Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open-source model is a decentralized software development model that encourages open collaboration. A main principle of open-source software development is peer production, with products such as source code, blueprints, and documentation freely available to the public. The open-source movement in software began as a response to the limitations of proprietary code. The model is used for projects such as in open-source appropriate technology, and open-source drug discovery.
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