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This paper investigates the effects of digitalization and organizational practices on innovation in Europe, between 2010 and 2016. We analyze the cross-country and industry differences in firms' investments and capabilities to adopt and use new technologies and their effects on innovation outputs. Along with traditional drivers of innovation, such as research and development (R&D) expenditure, two composite indicators are constructed. One encompasses direct measures of the adoption and use in enterprises of a set of digital technologies. The other measures the learning capacity of organizations, which captures the use of management tools and organizational practices concerned with the improvement of individual and organizational learning. Product, process, organizational, and marketing innovations are identified as well as their combinations within companies. Empirical evidence is provided by a unique dataset based on the integration at the sector within the country level of European Union (EU)-wide employers' and employees' surveys: the Community Innovation Survey (CIS), the Community Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) usage and e-commerce in enterprises survey (Eurostat), and the European Working Conditions Survey (Eurofound). The descriptive evidence shows that Digital technology adoption and use is rapidly growing across Europe, while the Learning capacity of organizations remains stagnant. By contrast, our results from the econometric analysis show that these investments can favor all forms of innovations and that, further, they may show some complementarity. Overall, a mix of product/process innovations and organizational/marketing innovations rests on joint investments in R&D, digital technology adoption and use, and learning capacity of the organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Based on the sample of the European information and communications technology (ICT) companies, this paper aims to identify which strategy of knowledge generation is most beneficial for companies: internal knowledge development or absorption of knowledge external to the company through corporate acquisition or merger. Design/methodology/approach: In this study, a longitudinal analysis of European ICT companies was conducted, contrasting internal knowledge creation, in the form of patent accumulation and research and development (R&D) efforts, with external learning through merger-and-acquisition (M&A) activities to uncover the best strategies for performance maximization. Findings: Results suggest that the two knowledge generation strategies are not complementary and demonstrate only marginal impact on organizational performance. However, intriguing patterns in combining the two became apparent. It was found that patent accumulation improves learning achieved through M&A activities, while also acting as a protection against corporate takeover. At the same time, the internal knowledge generation strategy was found to have a negative impact on financial performance, with external knowledge generation demonstrating somewhat mixed results. Practical implications: This paper provides practical insights into the patterns of internal and external knowledge generation activities. The two strategies were found not to be complementary, implying that companies must carefully choose their preferences. Originality/value: This large-scale study tackles the interplay between internal and external knowledge generation strategies, which are mostly studied separately. It reveals new patterns in corporate acquisition and divestment strategies as sources of new knowledge. It also ties the knowledge paradigm to organizational performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Postage stamps', basically as a token for payment of postal taxes, are now being recognized as an information source and historical document in recording national achievements that visually convey four core elements: denomination, country name, graphical design, and the textual element. They are a valuable means of communication easily available anywhere to anybody. Realizing them as source of extra revenue, commemorative stamps are made available over time. The information technology (IT) wave changed the hobby of stamp collection to Digital Philately, while information and communication technology (ICT) developments accelerated the hobby further to Virtual Philately. This paper focuses on the aspects of digital and virtual philately. This study aims to evaluate The World Association for the Development of Philately (WADP) Numbering System (WNS) database, which provides free access to authentic postage stamps issued by (Europe Countries) member countries and territories. A total of 30460 stamps with Top ten themes were found registered by Top ten countries the highest number of countries, Belgium2631 (8.638%), was observed to be the most popular theme at Architecture (Classical)960 (3.152%), For Europe Digital stamps, The paper also presents a detailed analysis of the 30460Europe Continent stamps commemorating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Since competitiveness is crucial in international trade, this paper contributes to the literature by interrogating the information and communication technology (ICT)-trade nexus on competitiveness in Eastern and Western European countries. Does ICT usage promote or hinder the impact of trade openness on competitiveness? This study attempts to answer two questions: (1) is the interaction of trade and ICT significant in promoting competitiveness? (2) Is the effect significantly different by European classification? Design/methodology/approach: With data on 17 European countries from 2007 to 2020 and using mobile phones and fixed telephone usage as ICT indicators, the study engages the bootstrapped ordinary least squares (BOLS) and method of moments quantile regression (MM-QR) techniques to probe the discourse. Findings: The empirical findings reveal that (1) the interaction of trade and ICT boost competitiveness; (2) the effect of mobile phone is consistent across the full, East, and West European samples; (3) the interaction effect is also significant across the conditional distribution of competitiveness and (4) mobile phones and fixed broadband usage reveal "leapfrog" effect across the quantiles. Overall, the study submits that ICT usage will enhance the impact of trade, and thus, ICT is a critical enabler of competitiveness in Europe; policy recommendations were discussed. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study examining the interaction effect of trade openness and ICT usage on competitiveness in Europe. In other words, the authors attempt to analyze how ICT usage influences trade-competitiveness dynamics. To fill the gap in the literature, the authors' use a sample of 17 European countries from 2007 to 2020. The variables of interest are the competitiveness index, trade openness, and four ICT indicators (mobile phone, fixed telephone subscriptions, fixed telephone subscriptions, and Internet users). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the communication of destination brands through social media (Twitter and Facebook) is investigated with a focus on the use of emotional adjectives. Based on ten of the most popular destinations in Europe, more than 15,000 tweets and 6000 Facebook posts and users' reactions to those messages were analysed. The study shows that DMOs are active and communicate using various emotional values about their brands on both platforms. The most popular emotional brand values for Twitter are 'glamorous' and 'happiness', while 'honest' and 'trendy' appear most frequently on Facebook. Interestingly, besides the fact that users actively engage on both platforms, significant differences were detected based on the values that users respond to as opposed to those that destinations use in their communication. Users respond much more strongly to messages that contain values related to the adjectives 'sentimental' and 'happiness' on Twitter, whereas on Facebook, adjectives such as 'getaway' and 'young' generate better responses. The study demonstrates that destinations can improve user reaction rates on social media and facilitate a positive destination brand image through the use of specific emotional brand values. Overall, the findings provide valuable as well as directly applicable implications for DMOs to use different values that align better with user expectations of the destination, which will ultimately lead to more effective online marketing strategies and stronger competitive profiles. This is an extended version of a conference paper entitled "Do DMOs communicate their emotional brand values? A comparison between Twitter and Facebook", previously published in the proceedings of Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2018 Conference (ENTER 2018) held in Jönköping, Sweden, January 24–26, 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Informacion Comercial Espanola Revista de Economia is the property of S.G.E.E.I.P.C., Secretaria de Estado de Comercio, Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Turismo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyses the effect of retirement on the familiarity with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) of older individuals. We argue that inability to cope with ICT might represent a threat for older individuals' social inclusion. To account for the potential endogeneity of retirement with respect to familiarity with ICT, we instrument retirement decision with the age-eligibility for early and statutory retirement pension schemes. Using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, we show that retirement reduces the computer literacy and the frequency of internet utilization for men and women. This finding is robust to the inclusion as control factors of health, cognition and social network indicators, which the literature has shown to be affected by retirement. Overall, the reduction in the familiarity with ICT after retirement tends to be stronger in the long-run. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper exploits variations in the timing of telecommunications reforms across Europe to investigate the relationship between the rise of alternative work arrangements and the emergence of the Internet. We evaluate whether sectors that are technologically more dependent on information and communication technologies (ICT) experienced disproportionately larger changes in their employment outcomes after telecommunications reforms were introduced. Our main results point to a disproportionate increase in total employment, part‐time work and home‐based work among ICT‐dependent sectors after the implementation of telecommunications reforms. These results suggest that telecommunications reforms affected labour market arrangements by fostering the adoption of ICT. The results are robust to several specifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education is the main driver of the development of science and economic development, but it can also be defined as an essential process in acquiring knowledge, skills and competencies. Purpose of this research paper was to highlight the needs and demands of modern society in preparing human resources for labour market with adequate skills and competences. During this process educational system has a great role in achieving this goal. Due to dynamic and developing environment many countries in the south-eastern Europe find very hard to adapt those changes. In this research paper several different approaches to education and learning process were presented and in detail explained. Learning through information processing, through research, simulation, and application of other interactive teaching methods using information and communication technology (ITC) should be imposed on the traditional form of ex cathedra. Education system in various south-eastern European countries was analysed and the research results suggest that south-eastern European countries have below average results compared to those from EU countries, but there is enough space to progress especially through the use of computer-based technologies. Today, the implementation of computer-based technologies has become a necessity in achieving greater engagement of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

City evolution is connected to social, economic and technological evolutions. New technologies induce further changes, which are highly innovative, which again affect the urban and territorial systems. The city once again adjusts to new opportunities in relation to information and communications technologies, energy and mobility. In this paper, smart city, configured as a set of interacting systems with people, is focused as a possible model to follow for pursuing sustainability in real cities of the twenty-first century. Three processes are recalled: city development, city planning theories and city rules. Smart city seems to be the convergent point for all processes evolving in European urban areas. Theoretical definitions of smart city are recalled. At the same time, the European Commission is promoting smart city rules for implementation. Moreover, in the last years some local decision-makers implemented specific measures that today can be considered in the class of smart city measures. The objective of the paper is to analyse the European perspectives for smart city, trying to separate the three processes that are strongly integrated, but without formal links. To verify the European smart city approach, a study case concerning city logistics is considered. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a guideline for the European Union (EU) to support high-speed broadband development based on economic frameworks and successful countries, Korea and Sweden. In the past decade, both policymakers and academic scholars have so far emphasised broadband policy mostly on the supply side. Increasing broadband adoption, nevertheless, is important for the EU to meet its Digital Agenda. Therefore, demand-side policy is also needed to stimulate high-speed broadband adoption in the EU. Design/methodology/approach – This paper applies frameworks of network externalities and the information and communications technology ecosystem to provide a better understanding of the relationship between supply- and demand-side policies. In addition, Korea and Sweden, which are two successful countries in high-speed broadband development particularly their demand-side policy, are chosen as a comparative case study. Findings – Both supply and demand sides are important to broadband policy to achieve the EU Digital Agenda 2020. It is also important for the policymakers to consider that demand-side policy should complement the implementation of supply-side policy, not substitute it. The demand side can be a great driver, especially with the development of content and applications for high-speed broadband. Originality/value – This paper fills the research gap on broadband policy on the demand side which is currently limited in comparison to the supply-side studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Central European Public Administration Review is the property of University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Public Administration and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Boletín de la Asociación de Geógrafos Españoles is the property of Asociacion de Geografos Espanoles and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The implementation of innovative technologies to support the planning and implementation of new transport schemes in cities requires staff to not only gain appropriate technical capabilities but also to have the willingness to adopt innovative technologies. Taking a sociotechnical approach, focussing on the Technology-Acceptance Model (TAM), we highlight employees' distrust and unwillingness to become vulnerable as an additional challenge for Local Authorities (LAs) to cope with the introduction of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) for mobility solutions in their transport departments. Using data from semi-structured interviews and workshops held across Europe (conducted as part of H2020 CIVITAS SUITS), two key indicators have been identified relating to the unwillingness of potential users to adopt new technologies for mobility solutions, i.e., incongruence of values and attribution of negative motives. Furthermore, we show behavioral intentions' that indicate that users' are not willing to become vulnerable and thus, provide evidence of signs that an organization can look for that may show that the likelihood of their technological implementation failing is relatively high. The practical guidelines provided at the end of the paper have been derived from our experiences of introducing new technologies for mobility solutions in partner cities of the SUITS project and highlight how users' can be persuaded to 'become vulnerable' and actual using new technologies for future mobility solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adult learning and open education have become key elements on the European Agenda. This paper presents the first results of a foresight activity that aims to contribute to an understanding of how ‘Opening up Education’ can improve adult learning in Europe in the future. It argues that to open up adult learning two main challenges must be overcome: the extent to which learners need guidance and, depending on the learning goals, the extent to which learners need recognition and certification. On the basis of these challenges, four non-exclusive scenarios are presented, illustrating different versions and contexts for open adult learning. The main conclusion of the paper is that in order to enhance the quality of adult learning and to avoid the risk of social exclusion, policy-makers need to develop a framework that allows learners to flexibly move between different learning scenarios. Learners also need to acquire ‘Open Education Competences’. Finally, a roadmap is presented outlining how this future vision could be implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes an interpretative framework which aims to provide a systemic perspective and an instrument to elicit the links between Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and governance, outlining the various challenges that this poses. In particular, it discusses the multiple dimensions of governance and identifies the public value drivers underpinning the conceptual and measurement framework proposed. In doing so the paper focuses on the 'openness' of governance mechanisms through its interoperability dimension. It considers state-of-the-art contributions at both academic and practitioner level and it also looks at how the proposed framework can be applied to the evaluation of two case studies at cross-border, and national-city level in Europe. Interoperability in fact is predominantly seen as an instrument for enabling cross-border collaboration between public administrations within and between different Member States. Many initiatives and projects have been promoted and carried out during the last decade resulting in a growing number of potentially reusable best practices and benchmarks. Nevertheless, the complexity and volume of resulting project outcomes represent a challenge for effective exploitation of the results in other initiatives and intervention contexts. Moreover, despite the recognition of interoperability as a multi-faceted concept (i.e. technological, organizational, and semantic), it seems to be mainly the technological aspects of interoperability that emerge from the available project results. The paper concludes outlining indications for future research and in particular on interoperability as a key driver for ICT-enabled governance. Interoperability is found to play a strategic role in the delivery of e-Government services to local and national communities within the EU. Moreover, its significance is expected to increase over the next few years, especially in terms of how it supports emerging city governance models and acts as the backbone of communications at a pan-European, national and local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After introducing the challenges and failures of first generation e-government (identified as e-Gov 1.0), and the rhetoric of the next generation of e-government efforts (identified as e-Gov 2.0), this paper presents an analysis of the promises of m-government, a relatively new phenomenon whose potential is largely unknown and unexplored but is already considered by many to be the most important subset of future e-government services. Discussing some cases of m-government technologies and applications worldwide, the paper identifies a number of risks and research questions to be further elaborated. In practice, are we about to go through a major adapting societal move, partly due to information and communication technologies (ICTs) but also to other co-factors likely to influence our near future (socio-political-economic and environmental trends), or are we just passing through a natural evolution (eventually faster than others occurred in the past)? Within this particular dynamic, the paper further addresses the importance of looking at what the various emerging scenarios may be, and which ones have to be considered and eventually deployed in terms of policy-relevant and favourable cost-benefit perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether and how diversified firms in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector innovate in green technologies and assess the potential impact of these innovations on firm performance. The analysis relies on a balanced panel dataset of European ICT firms in the period 2009–2013. The results suggest an inverted u-shaped relationship between the extent of technological diversification and the likelihood to develop green technologies. Technological diversification generally increases the likelihood of green innovations, but too high a dispersion of resources across a large variety of different technologies decreases the intensity of green innovations. The results show also that the development of green technologies is positively associated with firm performance: ICT firms involved in green patenting activity perform better than ICT firms with no green patents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following Florida's seminal work on the 'creative class' there is a great deal of interest concerning whether creativity, as an input, is important for regional growth. Answering this question requires developing a production framework that can distinguish creativity from other inputs. With data from Europe, this paper integrates the concept of information and communications technology (ICT) and the creative class into a theoretical production function. Findings reveal that not only is there a positive and interactive relationship between creative workers and ICT, but the combination of creative workers and ICT leads to higher levels of GVA growth. Moreover, creative workers were found to have a larger impact on growth in comparison with traditional human capital measures (i.e. graduates). Thus, findings from this research suggest that the creative class should not only pay attention to socio-economic preferences of individuals, but it must include wider social resources, such as ICT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the long history of monopolies, business method patents are a novel and recent edition. In the Digital Age, where time is money and speed is everything, innovative methods for undertaking business are as important to a business as the products or services it provides to its clients. In recent years several reviews, conducted in both Australia and internationally,4 have questioned the appropriateness of patenting business methods. This paper reviews the availability of business method patents in Australia in light of the 2006 decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court in Grant v Commissioner of Patents,5 which confirmed the need in Australia for a `useful product' to issue from the working of a method (business or otherwise) in order for the method to be patentable. This paper will review arguments both criticising and defending business method patents and consider whether business methods warrant special treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author comments on innovations in retail payment services, instruments and systems in Europe. Topics covered include the creation of the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) aimed at making cashless payments in euro from a single payment account anywhere in the euro area, the impact of innovations in information and communication technology on the retail payments industry and the challenges facing authorities and central banks in dealing with the safety and efficiency of retail payment systems.

Over the last 5 decades, the economic landscape in Europe has been transformed rapidly due to innovation, digitisation of the economy, and emergence of new sources of growth. However, the complex dynamics among diffusion of innovation, penetration of information and communication technology (ICT), and economic growth have not been adequately studied. This paper investigates the relationships among these three variables for European countries over 1961–2016. The goal is to determine whether the direction of causality among the variables runs both ways, one way, or not at all. Using a vector error-correction model, we find that in the long run, both innovation diffusion and ICT penetration stimulate economic growth. In the short run, however, the causal links are not always uniform and depend on proxies that are used for innovation diffusion and ICT penetration. The results provide valuable insights on the types of policies and strategies that would sustain economic growth in European economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impact of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) on sustainable transport development is indisputable. It can be tested through various methods. The identification and detailed analysis of specific types of ICT solutions, case studies approach or scenarios analysis are examples of perspectives for impact assessment that can lead to the proof that successful applications of ICT solutions entails optimised, more accessible, less resource consuming and less emission intensive transport. The impact of ICTs in travel induction and substitution and resulting decarbonisation effect is difficult to assess isolated from other social, economic and technologic drivers. Financial applicability reflects initial investment cost as well as operation maintenance costs. Organizational feasibility refers primarily to the necessary changes in organisation and conduct of operations created by introduction of ICTs. The social factor results from user and public acceptance or lack of it. User acceptance is combination of many sub factors of which most important are: D2D travel time, D2D travel costs, comfort and convenience, safety and security. The objective of the article is to present the applicability of ICT solutions in passenger transport from the perspective of transport users taking into consideration real case studies from different European background. These case studies were identified as a result of specific selection process in order to receive a complex and differentiated sample. The first element of the selection process was the identification of ICT solutions to be applied in case studies. The next element was the choice of regions corresponding to varied economic and geographic characteristics. In addition, cultural factors have a strong impact on the behaviour of users. The resulting multidimensional factor matrix allows for the selection of best fitting case studies, which have potential to cover most of the ICT applications. Five European settings are selected for in-depth research. Each case represents different geographic, social and economic area, which forms a good European sample across differentiated setups. Case studies are supported by user surveys. Surveys allow for direct answers regarding user attitudes towards proposed ICTs. Based on this approach findings could be reported. The main conclusion is that users in various regions with very different characteristics as to the wealth, GDP levels, geography, and cultural back-grounds represent surprisingly similar attitudes towards ICTs. Specific findings regarding different types of solutions and different type of users are presented in the article. The analysis of selected case studies shows also that they could offer solution to many of transport sector problems including key issues from transport policy agenda: environment, mobility or accessibility. The paper is based on the authors research conducted within COMPASS project (Optimised co-modal passenger transport for reducing carbon emissions, project co-funded by the European Commission within the Seventh Framework Programme). [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The positive effect of information and communication technologies (ICT) on trade between countries has been widely studied in the literature, but how ICT impacts regional trade is limited due to the lack of regional trade data. In this paper, we test whether broadband, as a proxy for ICT, increases bilateral trade at the regional level in Europe. We use a novel regional trade database of European Union regions and estimate an origin–destination flow gravity model for 2007 and 2010, accounting for spatial dependence among trade flows. Our results indicate that broadband is positive and significant in explaining trade patterns between European regions during both time periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Prisma Social is the property of Revista Prisma Social and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper explores the dichotomies and gendered invisibilities underpinning the concept of the knowledge economy and society through a closer examination of two emblematic and contrasting figures working in Information and Communication Technology and domestic/care work as bearers of different configurations of knowledge and skills in the contemporary circuits of globalisation. Such knowledge can be broken down into different types—such as embrained, encoded, embodied and encultured—which are valued differentially and with consequences for gendered labour markets. These gendered differences are reflected in current immigration policies which privilege migrants in scientific and information technology sectors and discount those engaged in care work, associated with embodied knowledge and skills. The impact of these differences has been reinforced during a period of economic recession when immigration has become increasingly restricted, even amongst the skilled. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

ABSTRACT Knowledge-intensive services (KIS) are important activities for regional growth and considered to be located at the top of urban and regional hierarchies. However, the widespread use of information and communication technologies (ICT) may lead to a higher degree of decentralisation. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the geographical distribution of KIS across European regions, highlighting some important patterns. Our results confirm that the location of KIS remains linked to regions with a high international profile but, contrary to what some previous studies have suggested, the relative concentration of KIS is rather low. However, important differences exist depending on the type of KIS, the country analysed and the comparative statistical level. Recent trends also present uneven results, but show a higher concentration of business services-related KIS. The importance of tacit knowledge may play a role in explaining this result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Scientiarum Polonorum. Oeconomia is the property of Wydawnictwo SGGW and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Research Papers of the Wroclaw University of Economics / Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego we Wroclawiu is the property of Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny we Wroclawiu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper disentangles the age-productivity-wage nexus by estimating productivity and wage equations with longitudinal employer-employee panel data for Belgium. Results indicate that workers above 49 years are significantly less productive than their younger colleagues. Moreover, while relative productivities across age groups are not found to differ significantly between ICT and non ICT firms, the upward sloping age-wage profile appears to be somewhat steeper in ICT firms. Yet, whatever the ICT environment, findings show that young workers are paid below and older workers above their marginal productivity. This pattern is in line with the deferred payment model developed by Lazear (J Polit Econ 87:1261-1284, ). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between corporate capital structures and historical market-to-book ratios using panel data for US, UK, and continental European firms for the period 1991-2001. We confirm the negative effect on leverage found for the United States, but find that this effect is weak for the United Kingdom and continental Europe and moreover specific to information and communication technology (ICT) firms and the ICT boom episode in continental Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present a visionary concept referred to as Collaborative and Cognitive Network Platforms (CCNPs) as a future-proof solution for creating a dependable, self-organizing and self-managing communication substrate for effective ICT solutions to societal problems. CCNP creates a cooperative communication platform to support critical services across a range of business sectors. CCNP is based on the personal network (PN) technology which is an inherently cooperative environment prototyped in the Dutch Freeband PNP2008 and the European Union IST MAGNET projects. In CCNP, the cognitive control plane strives to exploit the resources to better satisfy the requirements of networked applications. CCNP facilitates collaboration inherently. Through cognition in the cognitive control plane, CCNP becomes a self-managed substrate. The self-managed substrate, in this paper, is defined as cognitive and collaborative middleware on which future applications run without user intervention. Endemic sensor networks may be incorporated into the CCNP concept to feed its cognitive control plane. In this paper, we present the CCNP concept and discuss the research challenges related to collaboration and cognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban performance currently depends not only on a city's endowment of hard infrastructure (physical capital), but also, and increasingly so, on the availability and quality of knowledge communication and social infrastructure (human and social capital). The latter form of capital is decisive for urban competitiveness. Against this background, the concept of the 'smart city' has recently been introduced as a strategic device to encompass modern urban production factors in a common framework and, in particular, to highlight the importance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the last 20 years for enhancing the competitive profile of a city. The present paper aims to shed light on the often elusive definition of the concept of the 'smart city.' We provide a focused and operational definition of this construct and present consistent evidence on the geography of smart cities in the EU27. Our statistical and graphical analyses exploit in depth, for the first time to our knowledge, the most recent version of the Urban Audit data set in order to analyze the factors determining the performance of smart cities. We find that the presence of a creative class, the quality of and dedicated attention to the urban environment, the level of education, and the accessibility to and use of ICTs for public administration are all positively correlated with urban wealth. This result prompts the formulation of a new strategic agenda for European cities that will allow them to achieve sustainable urban development and a better urban landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Social Technologies / Socialines Technologijos is the property of Mykolas Romeris University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper reports on the LEADER+ programme and on the work carried out supporting rural communities in EU countries under the LEADER+ programme. This is a programme that supports development in particularly vulnerable rural regions of the European countries that are members of the EU. It supports creative and innovative projects that can contribute to long-term and sustainable development in these regions. In this paper, we will focus on three specific areas: networking, facilitation of groups, and information and communication technologies. Some case studies are shortly described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the renewed Lisbon strategy has emphasised the potential role that ICT can play in meeting the challenges of boosting growth and competitiveness in the EU, there is no clear understanding of the way ICT could complement the structural reform programme which is at the core of that strategy. The evidence presented in this paper suggests that higher market rigidities in the EU have deterred ICT investment and ICT contribution to GDP growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides a synthesis of the construction industry needs and requirements in relation to the adoption and use of information and communication technologies (ICT). This is based, on the one hand, on existing research and technology development initiatives commissioned at a national and European level, and, on the other, on a wide consultation with construction industry key players across Europe. A framework, used as a basis for capturing industry requirements, and formulating an ICT vision, has been defined. Five priority areas have been identified with the potential to solve the ICT related problems of the construction industry, namely: knowledge management, legal and contractual aspects management, quality and performance management, total lifecycle management, and human aspects management. The ICT vision, enabled by addressing these priority areas, has been formulated on a consensus basis, and a detailed roadmap has been developed providing a pragmatic implementation of the proposed vision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the debate on the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) into schools, the beliefs and attitudes of teachers towards ICT in teaching and learning have always been regarded as central criteria for successful implementation of new technologies. In this context, a study in 2013 by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, IEA, provided insights into teachers’ beliefs regarding ICT and showed that perceptions of the pedagogical advantages of technologies differ between countries. With regard to this finding, this paper seeks to determine whether there is a typology of teachers with different attitudes towards the potential of ICTs for learning. This question is addressed by conducting latent class analyses on a sample of teacher data from three European countries – the Czech Republic, Germany and Norway. Furthermore, the paper investigates how the use of computers by teachers varies between the groups to which these teachers can be assigned. In doing so the research reported at hand connects, arguably for the first time, representative data on teacher typologies of attitudes towards and beliefs about ICT in teaching and learning with data on computer use in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a qualitative investigation on user reactions, opinions, and sentiments about a TV-based technological solution developed within the EasyReach Project of the EU Ambient Assisted Living Joint Program to promote social interaction of less educated elderly people, that is, those individuals who, because of poor scholarization, low income, and, possibly, linguistic barriers, still find it difficult to use computers in order to improve their socialization. Experimental data were collected by extensive trials involving 40 real-end users. A methodology called “scenario engagement” was applied to get participants engaged in a live demonstration with the mediation of a facilitator who assisted elderly people to interact with the system. Results point out that the system can be effectively employed to foster social interaction, particularly when it is introduced in a collective use environment (e.g., Senior Center). Although the focus of the investigation was on information and communication technology-enabled social environments, the end users themselves strongly suggested to include in future system releases extra functions considered as essential opportunities for their potential digital lives: that is, medical or health services and bridges toward public administration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Hospitals are making big investments in various types of ICT, so it is important to investigate their effects on innovation and performance. This paper presents an empirical study in this direction, based on data for 743 hospitals from 18 European countries. We specified and estimated econometrically five equations: one for product innovation, one for process innovation and three equations for the three different dimensions of (ICT-enabled) hospital performance. All five equations included various ICT-related variables reflecting ICT infrastructure and a series of important ICT applications, some of them hospital-specific, and some others of general business use, and also ICT personnel (viewed as a kind of 'soft' ICT investment), while the performance equations also included the two innovation measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the activities of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which, as a result of the transformation of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), has become one of the main elements of the European security architecture. The subject of interest is the international legal cooperation of the participating States in the field of international legal provision of the collective cybersecurity. Since its beginning the twenty-first century has been marked by the rapid development of information and communication technologies (ICT), which significantly accelerated communication processes both at the national and international levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]