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Study commissions

"Future of the Media in the Economy and Society - Germany's Road into the Information Society" - Working paper
I.	The rapid developments in the electronic media and in information and communication technologies are having an impact on the economy and the labour market, on society, education, culture, politics and democracy. The growing efficiency of the equipment and networks available and the rising number of linkups between the most varied of applications are opening up new opportunities for Germany as an economic location. However, the desire to exploit the options now offered and, at the same time, the need to control the risks involved are also posing new challenges to politicians as well. With a view to establishing the need for action, the requirements to be met in taking any action, and the scope available for such action, the German Bundestag in December 1995 set up a Study Commission on the "Future of the Media in the Economy and Society - Germany's Road into the Information Society", which convened for its first meeting in January 1996. The objects of the Study Commission are to outline the political implications of using information technologies and to propose any parliamentary initiatives which may be necessary in addition to current legislative projects to make full use of the opportunities offered by the information society and to deal with any risks involved. In analysing present and describing future developments, the Commission is to proceed from various assumptions concerning changes in underlying conditions and different lines of development, work out alternative scenarios and examine these with a view to identifying any need for action in the political sector. The Study Commission is proceeding from a wide range of analyses, forecasts, programmes of action and the results of pilot schemes that have been submitted by the G7 conference, the EU, Germany's Federal and state governments, associations, business, initiatives, etc. Account will also be taken of the results obtained by the Federal government's technology council, the Federal government's report "Info 2000: Germany's Road into the Information Society" and the report of the Office of Technology Assessment in the German Bundestag (TAB) "Multimedia - Myths, Opportunities and Challenges". The Study Commission is to give priority to presenting interim results in those issues indicated below where there is an urgent need for government action. This will not affect legislation currently being debated in parliament.
II.	Industrialized countries are undergoing a fundamental change comparable in its impact with the transition from an agricultural to an industrial society last century. Today, on the threshold to the 21st century, the new technologies available for transmitting and processing information are such that the transition from the conventional industrial society to the information society is taking place at a very rapid pace. Information is evolving into a basic prerequisite of any business activity, alongside the traditional factors of production land, labour and capital. One of the Commission's objects is to examine and analyze the attendant changes, and to indicate lines of development and the need - and the scope available - for action. How will the economy and society evolve in the 21st century? Economy 21 What shape will our economy have in the information age? What changes may we expect in company organization and in cooperation between companies, suppliers and customers? What products and services will be produced in future, and how and where? What options will small and mid-sized firms, in particular, have to access modern telecommunication structures, and how can they benefit from using them? What opportunities does the world of multimedia offer small- and mid-sized firms, and what options for improving conditions in setting up business? How will the new media and the information and communication technologies change the international division of labour? What preparations must we make in order stay efficient, competitive and able to act in this new environment in future, so as not to be overrun by technological developments in Japan and the United States? What changes are in the pipeline for the various sectors, and what impact will they have, e.g. for banks and insurance companies? What sectoral structure will we have in the 21st century? Technology 21 How will technology evolve in the area of networks, services and applications (hardware, software, information services)? What potentials will exist for shaping technology to support development and production processes in the area of services, industry and handicrafts? What will the end user expect of information technologies? What infrastructural preconditions (public and private) are needed to use the new information and communication technologies? What are the general trends in the telecommunications and multimedia area in the chief industrial nations, specifically in the US and Japan? Parliament, state and administration 21 What changes may emerge in the process of forming political opinions and in decision-making at EU, Federal, state and local government levels from using the new information and communication technologies? To what extent and by what means is public control and monitoring still possible at all? How can the new technologies make administrative flows more efficient and more responsive to citizens' needs? How can adequate participation of all citizens in public and political life be ensured by providing a basic level of supply in the options available for accessing the new media? Labour 21 How will the world of work be changed by deployment of the new information and communication technologies? In what areas and to what extent will telework jobs be created? What new professions will we have, and with what job specifications? How can professional qualifications meet these needs? In what sectors must we expect job losses, and where will we have new jobs? What new requirements will evolve for collective and individual labour law (inter alia, Industrial Constitution Law, Law on Co-Determination)? What will be the impact on the future of normal employment relationships (full-time and with social insurance cover) in particular and on new forms of self-employment? What new requirements will have to be met by company health schemes and the social security system? Will telework lead to a better reconciliation of the needs of family and work? Society 21 How will work and life styles in our society change as the separation of home and work gradually ceases to apply? Will there be a risk of society splitting into users and losers? Will increased use of the new media and technologies on and off the job lead to social isolation and deprivation for the individual? What impact will the information society have on the consumer? How will the structure and methods of public communication change? How can diversity of opinion, freedom of opinion and the protection of personal rights go on being ensured? How will we handle the flood of information in future? What will be the implications of changing patterns of perception from the use of the multimedia? How can receptiveness to the new technologies be encouraged, and how can society be sensitized with regard to any undesirable, or even harmful consequences? What new opportunities will emerge for girls and women in professional life from having access to, and using, the new technologies? Education 21 What consequences will there be for our education system from the emergence of new areas of education and employment? What changes are necessary to give people confidence in handling the new information and communication technologies (school, vocational school, university, vocational and further training)? How can we ensure that no section of the population is disadvantaged in its access to the new technologies? How are people being prepared for future "life-time learning"? How will media education in school and university, and in extracurricular education and further training, as well as the acquisition of media competence, be promoted? In an information and media society, it is possible with the help of telelearning to integrate learning into various areas of life. How are we adapting our education system to accommodate such developments by working out training programmes and providing the requisite infrastructures in the way of schools, vocational schools, universities and public facilities like youth clubs, museums and libraries? Environment and traffic 21 What implications does the use of the new information and communication technologies in business and households (e.g. telework, satellite offices, teleshopping, telelearning, home banking, teleconferencing) have for traffic flows and traffic volumes? To what extent can traffic volumes be reduced? How will the use of information and communication technologies change material flows (positively and negatively)? Will greater use of the new technologies create new risks for environment and health (e.g. electrosmog, electronic scrap)?
III.	Innovation cycles in the new media and information and communication technologies have become very much shorter. Technological change is processing at an ever faster pace, so that there is a need for swift political action to be taken in some areas. This being so, the Study Commission, in a crossparty effort, has agreed not to confine itself to merely presenting a final report after two years, but to respond quickly to the process of change and present interim reports. Independently of, and in addition to, current legislative processes, it will act on the basis of its own results and indicate any need for public action, at both national and international level, especially in the areas specified below; in this respect, heed must be paid to the existence of jurisdictions at various levels, viz. EU, federation and state: Creation of a regulatory and legal framework for information structures, the new services and their applications, and legislation in the multimedia area; Removal of state regulations that inhibit the spread and deployment of the information and communication technologies. In particular, the focus is to be on the following points: Further development of the underlying legal conditions for telecommunications, and the implications for the economy and society Definition of radio/TV Development and future of the dual radio/TV system Media merger control and media concentration control to ensure a diversity of opinion and freedom of information, as well as functioning competition and free access to networks and, hence, to markets Youth protection Consumer policy Imparting of media competence in order to permit self-determination in handling the new media Data security as a prerequisite for the commercial use of the new media, i.e. options for encrypting (cryptography) and decrypting Law enforcement (encrypting/decrypting) Criminal law and data networks Electronic money and electronic payments Data protection: protection of the private sphere and the home, the right to informational self-determination Protection of copyright as a basic prerequisite for business and competition Where required, the Study Commission will make inquiries, award research contracts, mount hearings and organize discourses. As regards specific questions and focal themes, the Study Commission will conduct expert discussions, form an opinion and submit comments in the form of interim reports. Ultimately, all results are to be combined in a final report. In performing its tasks, the Study Commission must also make use of the new media, e.g. by way of a home page and newsgroups in the Internet and by organizing on-line discussions.

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