The EU's expanding technology policy role can be justified by both competitive challenges and advantages which are more or less shared by all its member states. However, the politics of European technology policy remain lively and contentious. They reflect wider debates about the proper role of the EU in European political and economic life. This important book provides an authoritative yet accessible assessment of the development, size and impact of European technology policies, and a critique of their current direction.

Governments have recognized for decades the dynamic role played by microelectronics, computers, and telecommunications in the modern economy. Although Europe's deficiencies in these crucial sectors had long been acknowledged, it was not until the 1980s that European nations began collaborating to develop and promote high-tech industries. Their collaboration gives rise to many questions. Why, for example, did the joint efforts come at such a late date rather than in the 1960s or '70s? And how is it possible to work together in economically sensitive areas? These questions point to fundamental issues in the areas of international cooperation, international institutions, and technology policy. Before the institution of the collaborative programs ESPRIT (European Strategic Programme for Research and Development in Information Technology), RACE (R & D in Advanced Communications-technologies in Europe), and EUREKA (European Research Coordination Agency) in the 1980s, each European country sought its own technological renaissance through protection of national firms behind walls of technical standards, procurement preferences, and research subsidies. This thorough, carefully researched work examines the breakdown of these walls. It will appeal to political scientists, economists, and scholars of technology and Western Europe interested in the political contours of the high-tech landscape. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1992.

This book explores the multiple challenges that the global technology shift is posing to the EU. It raises the question of how European societies will mobilize the positive effects of the rapid technological advancement in digitalization, robotization, and artificial intelligence, while mitigating the negative consequences in terms of job losses, cybercrime, and social and political polarization. From the vantage point of experts from economics, law, and political science, this book provides insights into the role that the EU is and ought to be playing in regulating global platform companies, addressing taxation in the digital economy, mitigating job displacements on the labour market, and tackling ethical concerns of artificial intelligence and the prospect of digital democracy. All chapters are based on up-to-date research findings, succinct assessment of the current state of affairs and ongoing debates. They conclude with policy recommendations for policy makers on European and national levels. ‘This volume has a solid foundation in the highly topical question of technological change. More importantly, the individual chapters are written by qualified scholars whose analytically advanced contributions are likely to interest a wide audience. I can strongly recommend this book for scholars and students in political science, law, and economics.’ —Carl Fredrik Bergström, Professor of European Law, Uppsala University, Sweden ‘When the Commission took office in 2019, it put forward its vision as to how Europe’s digital future could be ‘shaped’ in a way that makes the digital transition enrich people’s lives and make sure that European businesses fully benefit from the opportunities offered by digital technologies. Then COVID drastically accelerated the take up of digital solutions. As the digital transformation affects every single one of us it is important that we have the widest possible debate on its inherent risks and opportunities. This is why I warmly recommend this book. It brings together an inter-disciplinary set of scholars able to analyse the multifaceted implications of the technological shift. And I could not agree more with the book’s main takeaway, i.e. that we need to create an adaptive regulatory framework capable of harnessing the positive effects of technological changes while buttressing the negative impact on European society and citizens.’ —Ambassador Kim Jørgensen, Head of Cabinet to Commissioner and Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, European Commission

First published in 1973, European Technology analyses the possibilities for cooperation and collaboration and suggests how the technology ‘gap’ between Europe and the United States can be bridged. Concentrating mainly on aerospace, nuclear and computer fields Roger Williams looks at the aspirations and achievements in technological cooperation both within the EEC and without. How can commitment to join projects be generated? What are the internal managerial and external political problems associated with joint action? How will technological collaboration contribute to wider European economic and political integration. The strength of the European economy will depend to a large extent on improved technological and industrial cooperation. This book provides the first theoretical foundation for policy making in this vital field. This book is a must read for scholars and researchers of European politics, European history and British politics.

This publication draws a comprehensive picture of the Science, Technology and Innovation activities in the European Union as carried out by its people, enterprises and governments. It provides the reader with statistical information to appreciate the evolution and composition of science and technology in Europe and its position with regard to its partners. The pocketbook is divided into seven chapters among which: Government budget appropriations or outlays on Research and Development (GBAORD), R&D Expenditure, R&D Personnel, Human Resources in Science and Technology, Innovation, Patents, High-technology.

First published in 1969, European Advanced Technology expounds a programme of action for Europe to tackle the challenge posed by American technology in the 1960s. It analyses first the nature of the American predominance in science and technology and goes onto describe the efforts of the major European states to counter it on their own. It then explains the limitations of these efforts at the level of the nation state and shows how European countries have gone on to work together in certain key sectors: high energy physics, nuclear power, aircraft, space, electronics, transport and communications. The history of these programmes is examined carefully and the book describes a wider strategy. It deals with larger questions like how Europe can develop a common science and technology policy; what should be done to promote industrial integration and European companies, and what individual companies and the British government can and should do? This book will be an essential read for scholars and researchers interested in the history of European Union, European history, international organisations and European Politics.

The European Cities and Technology Reader is divided into three main sections presenting key readings on: Cities of the Industrial Revolution (to 1870), European Cities since 1870 and the Urban Technology Transfer.