ISSN 1023-425 Χ

APRIL 1996 No. 19 EN

Human aspects ofthe information society

Published by the European Commission Directorate-General for Industry (DG III) and Directorate-General for Telecommunications, Information Market and Exploitation of Research (DG XIII) APRIL 1996 No. 19 Editorial Giant magneto resistance

The information revolution 1 Research helps domestic electronics market 14 User-friendly government The Frankfurt Book Fair Berlin on the infobahn 2 Showplace for Global video games cyberpubüshing 17

The ultimate casino 6 Venus now goddess of the seas?

Telecommunications and elderly or Making shipping safer 22 disabled people Business process reengineering A vital aid to independence 10 A new way of working 26

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The opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily Editorial Directors: Robert Verrue and Stefano Micossi. reflect those ofthe Commission. Reproduction of the text is Designed by Ludden Taylor Associates, [»ndon. authorised, but the CEC is not responsible for the use made of Frinirti iti Belgium the information. Please contact Section OP5 at EUR­OP for all Catalogue number CD-AK-95-003-EN-C reproduction requests (see Luxembourg address above). ISSN 1023­l2.r)X Editorial

THE INFORMATION SOCIETY has often been The information revolution differs spoken of as a revolution in the way By the people, from its predecessors in one further we live our lives - a revolution as respect: it contains within itself many of wide-ranging in its impact as the the answers to the problems it raises. Industrial Revolution was in its day. for the people? Just as it offers new learning tools that In fact the 'information revolution' can make education and training more promises to have a greater effect efficient, the information society also than its predecessor. offers the potential to help some of our First, the speed of change is far creating a society in which the most disadvantaged and isolated greater. We only have to reflect that the computer-illiterate and the non- citizens. Disabled people can use the power ofthe steam engines that Boulton connected are left on the margins? Internet as easily as anyone else. It and Watt were producing in the 1780s The Commission's commitment to doesn't matter what class, sex or race was little different from that of engines liberalisation of the information and you are - you don't even need an e-mail 60 years before. By comparison, the telecommunications market will be a address, thanks to the rapidly expanding computing power you can buy for an key factor in ensuring that the products network of Cyber-cafés! ECU doubles about every three years. of the information society will be In December 1995, the City of The second difference is that the available and accessible to the broadest Stockholm hosted a conference on information revolution is global from possible user base. We want to create a 'Implementation of the Information the outset. While the industrial virtuous circle. If there is a high demand Society in Cities and Regions' which it revolution can be seen as having a for new services, suppliers will naturally was my pleasure to attend. This genesis that is fixed in time and seek to satisfy that demand. Choice of conference provided an ideal geography, the information revolution is services will grow, alternatives and opportunity to see what is going on at diversified and dispersed, coalescing competition will force quality up and ground level: local authorities, local from disparate technologies developed prices down. More users and customers groupings of businesses and the citizens in different places and times. will come into the market, and demand themselves are working hard to ensure Furthermore, taking place in the context will grow further. that the information society does not of increasingly global markets, the Of course, there are practical steps leave them behind. This 'just do it' information revolution forms a feedback we can take to ensure that people are mentality offers us the greatest hope for loop that serves to accelerate the speed not left behind. Education and training the future. of globalisation. is a vital tool in preparing to meet the It is no longer a question of whether The third difference is that the new challenges of the information Europe will join the information society. information society by its very nature society. Young people who grow up in a The information society is happening all has a direct impact on the individual. PC-dominated world will see nothing around us already. Our goal now should An impact that can be either inclusive unusual in the information society. It is be to make sure that its benefits are or exclusive. It has the potential to the older generations who are likely spread throughout society. ■ create a 'global village,' open to all, but have problems with this new challenge. also to create an exclusive club limited Therefore, it is vital that the concept of Stefano Micossi DGIII to those with the right equipment and 'Life-Long Learning' is taken to heart, the right know-how. not only by individuals, who must be So the question we must ask prepared to be flexible and open to new ourselves is: how can we ensure that the experiences, but also to businesses, who Information Society does not lead to need to view training as an exercise that exclusion, adding to the divisions that adds value to their workforce. We need still exist in society? How can we avoid to invest more in education and training, both for the information society and through the information society.

l&T MAGAZINE 1 User-friendly government Berlin officials on the infobahn

"BARKING RATHER THAN ASKING" was how coordinated across Berlin by the Land's These applications are chiefly intended the Spiegel headed its article of last May information technology department for Berlin's 23 district authorities on the training offensive mounted by the (LIT). And a structural disadvantage - and, in conjunction with the MAN, Berlin authorities to curb city officials' the outmoded computer infrastructure help make government more user- allegedly cavalier treatment of the in the former East Berlin - has been friendly. The following are a few of public. However, this abrasive manner, turned to advantage in the process. the improvements: often known as "Berliners' sharp New IT projects need not take old ■ Departments can now set and tongue," because of its unmistakable hardware into account - with the result coordinate deadlines electronically. origins, is all too understandable, and that new applications can run on new ■ Authorised persons can access text not just amongst public servants. infrastructure from the outset. and graphics from any terminal, One need only think of the many regardless of the workstation from Berlin taxidrivers who now find their The Metropolitan Area Network which the data is sent. time-hallowed routes blocked off At the heart of the new infrastructure ■ People moving home inside Berlin by roadworks. is the LIT-designed metropolitan need no longer traipse across the city to For in no other city is change quite area network (MAN). The first obtain specific records and certificates so painfully apparent as in Berlin. development phase came on stream in from their former district authority: Take construction: more than 300 September 1994 - bringing high-speed their new authority can access the data building projects now dominate the communications to sections of the on the network. skyline, including the largest building municipal government and the local ■ Ideally, one official should be able to site in Europe, on the Potsdamer Platz. education and research organisation, perform an entire administrative On the other hand, many international linking some 100 locations. In 1996, procedure from A to Z. So someone companies such as Sony and Asea Berlin council's production making a claim for benefits at 9 am Brown Boveri are transferring their network is due to switch to ATM, could have the entitlement decision European head offices to Berlin, sending with a transmission bandwidth of within just half an hour. out a clear signal that the city is a good 155 megabits per second. For the time being, cross-sectoral place to do business. The largest Using modern fibre optic cables, the cooperation between departments on industrial city between Paris and MAN carrier is scheduled to gradually the MAN - on applications for planning Moscow is a hive of activity..... provide high-speed communications permission for example - is still a The local authorities have not been link-ups for all Berlin's government somewhat futuristic proposition. spared the consequences. The extension offices and universities. The lines circle However, thought is already being given of the city boundaries, the population the eastern part of the city, meeting up to how a number of applications which increase to some 3.5 million and the with the existing circuit in the western have hitherto been confined exclusively disparities in infrastructure on either half to form a figure of eight. to individual departments might be side of the former East/West divide have But MAN cannot live by speed alone: adapted for intersectoral economic brought huge administrative challenges. content is crucial too. That is why functions. Multimedia applications are Innovative information and administrative applications planned for also to be integrated into the MAN at a communications technology has Berlin over the last few years have been later stage. become the order of the day, integrated into the network: automated A full 6,000 posts are now being budgeting, an automated property networked for the new applications register, integrated personnel alone. By 2002, the number of management, automated social security networked stations in Berlin council and an environmental information system. Online applications that predate the MAN have also been included, for instance in the fields of crime control and resident and vehicle registration.

l&T MAGAZINE offices is set to rise from the present Sharing out the management function 15,000 to around 40,000. The MAN will Alongside the metropolitan area enable better and far faster network, the LIT has set up a service communication between these and administration centre (SAZ), in workstations than with the Deutsche conjunction with IBM, for general Telekom 64K connections used up to infrastructure management. Only a now, and can drive a large number of combination of the support and applications with a high graphics management functions could ensure content as well. effective control of the heterogeneous The basic technological initiative was client/server structures set up on around prompted by user needs. The civil 200 separate networks. The SAZ works servants in Berlin are interested not in with a series of local administration the overall network structure, but in the centres (LAZs). Management of the on-line services it supplies. The design system as a whole is thus based on a of the MAN is therefore not static, but division of centralised and decentralised can be adapted to the location and functions: central support and technical set-up. And that in turn is in network/systems coordination by the the interests of the "customers" - the SAZ and local management of citizens of Berlin. decentralised tasks by the LAZs.

l&T MAGAZINE 3 ■ Fault management: detection, location and recovery of faults. Major projects Remote reconfiguration of BASIS (archive and information system malfunctioning components of the Brandenburg modules) Automated budgeting MAN system. Integrated personnel management ■ Load management: monitoring and Management information system measurement of resources to locate Automated property register bottlenecks. The information obtained is used for planning purposes (e.g. resource extension). ■ Accounts management: recording of data on use and maintenance of statistics. Also assignment and monitoring of quotas and cost allocation to users. ■ Security management: protection of sensitive data against loss, misuse and manipulation by means of special encryption algorithms and authentication techniques. The resulting automation, standard­ isation, resource sharing, integrated planning, coordination and skills training combine to make the structure as a whole entirely cost­effective. Moreover, the balanced division of tasks between the SAZ and the LAZs promotes the decentralisation of information technology and administrative structures ­ moving the whole closer to the citizen. In all, a substantial shift away from the concept of "applicant" to that of "customer."

Cash for Council coffers And that is not all. Owing to the cost of using Deutsche Telekom's high­speed lines, Berlin Council has had recourse to municipal rights­of­way and been This helps streamline the system: able to use Land­owned lines ­ in fact specialist know­how is concentrated at sections of the 1,300 km network laid the SAZ, so only a small team is needed for the city fire service and the traffic at LAZ level to oversee infrastructure. signalling authorities. Only lines While the local staff require wide­ linked up to the MAN from outside ranging skills, they need not concern run on Deutsche Telekom's ISDN themselves with matters of detail. It also network. Private­sector involvement in takes some of the pressure off individual running the network is planned for council departments, and all users can the medium term. call on the value­added services of the This puts Berlin a step ahead of SAZ when necessary. The SAZ/LAZ the network liberalisation across the structure offers the following services: EU, which is not due until early 1998. ■ Configuration management: The city is also killing two birds with management of resources and one stone, for not only are running costs configuration data (e.g. user profiles, relatively low, but prospects on the access rights and computer names). extra revenue front are rosy as well. Also distribution and installation Surplus capacity on the MAN is to be of software and associated licence made available by fibre to other management. institutions and companies ­ for a price, ■ Software and data distribution: naturally. A number of Berlin banks dissemination of software modules have already shown a keen interest in via the network to government the idea. departments, using suitably designed interfaces. Also supply of standard tools on the network (such as word processing).

4 l&T MAGAZINE German capital: enough to reduce even a Berlin official to silence. Not least because, once the numerous federal subsidies are withdrawn, Berlin will have to meet the future costs of the system alone... ■

Martin Heller DGXIII

Spandau Landesamt für Inforniationstechnik Berlin Charlottenburg Berliner Strasse 112­115 Konrad Zuse D­10713 Berlin Zentrum Germany Wilmersdorf Fax: +49­30­867.31.12 Freie Universität MAN contact: Norbert Manthey Zehlendorf HMI Tel: +49­30­867.67.10

SAZ/LAZ contact: Andreas Mahn Tel: +49­30­867.60.64

Selected points of the voice and high-speed data transmission network of the Land of Berlin (FDDI/ATM)

Other projects for the German capital

Besides the MAN, other major projects decision­making and an explosion in The Berlin development plan is are in hand as part of Berlin's travelling expenses must all somehow be currently at the design stage. It is preparation for its role as the capital of avoided. The IVBB project, now at the intended as an infrastructure strategy to Germany: the Berlin­Bonn information implementation stage, solves some of accompany the transfer of the seat of link (IVBB) and the development plan. these problems by enabling government from Bonn to Berlin. It In line with Germany's federal structure, simultaneous, direct and interactive makes use of computer­assisted they are both financed from a variety of processing of procedures via various planning procedures, as, in addition to sources: federal, Land and local system platforms: the construction of buildings for government. • end­to­end video­conferencing on a parliament, ministries and the civil "virtual office" basis, service, adjustment is needed in a great The Berlin-Bonn information link • access to all sub­applications of the many areas such as: (IVBB) operates on the principle "move system, including archives, • adapting existing buildings to the data, not people." The German • integration of a wide range of requirements of effective government, Bundestag's decision of 20 June 1991 to components such as telephones, PCs, • bringing communications move the capital to Berlin will lead to the videos and CD­ROMs, infrastructure into line with the needs transfer of some 11,000 ofthe more than • development of a comprehensive of a seat of government by the year 20,000 government officials currently multimedia application within the 2000, based in Bonn. Yet, as the decision also client/server architecture. • bridging the development gap calls for a fair division of tasks between "Telecooperation" is the key between the two halves of the city and Berlin and Bonn and compensatory objective in the IVBB project, hence the establishing a homogeneous measures for the latter, a long­term choice of IBM's project for remote infrastructure throughout Berlin. division ofthe State institutions between cooperation and document management the two cities is in prospect. This creates in the office under a call for tenders new pressures for cooperation between issued by the Federal Ministry for the various ministries, particularly as Research and Technology. The regards spanning the geographical application is not limited to use under distance between them. Long­distance the IVBB system: it can also be used postage, geographical obstacles to elsewhere, at present as part of a collaborative venture between a number of federal ministries, the Land of Nordrhein­Westfalen and the German Bundestag.

l&T MAGAZINE 5 "Faites vos jeux... Les jeux sont faits"

Games will be the FORGET MONTE-CARLO: the global video cheap and can store a lot of graphics games market is the ultimate casino. and even some digital video, an paradigm and premier The wheel is spinning and the ball is important consideration as games get rolling for the video games industry, bigger and more complicated. product for tomorrow's gambling that a new generation of "All," reply a chorus of Nintendo fans, technology will power it back beyond "CD-ROM isn't as fast, and who needs audience, because the $10 billion level it reached in 1993. digital video? Video limits the game Sales of games based on 16-bit to whatever video sequences are of youth's obsession processors peaked then and the market stored. MegaTedium: real gaming has since shrunk. The industry is betting is about creating a virtual environment with interactivity and that the next generation will restore which calculates the moves growth, just as earlier generations did - of the player in real time with the downstream impact 4-bit, 8-bit and 16-bit in their time - by almost infinite possibilities." revealing new creative vistas and "Cyber Twaddle," ripost the CD folk, of video games as pulsing the adrenalin faster through the "Designers of cartridge games just don't veins of young devotees, quick to tire of understand how to use CD real estate successive generations yesterday's toys. The gamers themselves efficiently. Gamers ate Walt Disney's are waiting for something new. There is Lion King alive; they also freaked out mature. an air of expectation, even outside the on Virgin's haunted house epic, The industry because some experts believe Seventh Guest, and the best-selling the business will supply the paradigm Burn Cycle - and these both have for the new, undefined interactive video..." services of the Information Society...a This is an argument that will run and far cry from the traditional video games run; much depends on the genre of profile: Boys 'n' Toys. game you want to play. Clearly an This time Nintendo and Sega, the adventure game based on a hit warring giants of earlier generations, are Hollywood movie will benefit from being joined by new players. Step some movie sequences - or even new forward 3DO with its vision of a global, scenes shot specially for the game. multi-vendor standard and promises of What's certainly true is that the rapidly compatibility and upgradability....but growing segment of games published for where are the killer games promised PC is on CD-ROM. earlier? Cue Sony Interactive with its To understand the increasing proprietary Play Station. According to importance of games in computing, many, Sony will have the most powerful consider two things: system, well-supported with specially Fact A: all the computer developed games titles and manufacturers are telling us that we uncompromised by any compatibility should buy a new multimedia PC with a requirements with earlier products. This CD-ROM drive; will use 32-bit technology and a Fact B: many generations of proprietary CD-ROM system. It will adolescents have matured since Atari knock heads Sumo-style with Sega started the market in 1977 with the Ur- whose 32-bit Saturn system also ancestor of all games, Pong. This was in features a proprietary CD-ROM. But glorious monochrome analogue "Les jeux sont faits"- final call of 3DO has yet to exploit the capabilities of technology and based on ping-pong. The croupier to roulette gamblers its M2 graphics engine. boys who used to play on console It is interesting that Nintendo will systems at home are now sitting in front stay faithful to traditional ROM of PCs in the office, and increasingly at cartridges - where the game is etched home too. The equation is (A+B=0)$, into a chip - rather than migrating to where O equals Opportunity. CD. The respective merits of cartridges and CDs are hotly debated in the business and amongst gamers. CDs are

l&T MAGAZINE I^t, y.

J I

TP·*8"- Demographics, time and Moore's Games based on movies are also Lawf1) have converged to expand the significant, although even Hollywood is market for PC CD-ROM games, by 50- having trouble converting all hit movies 60% over the last year. The US into hit games... Super Mario failed as a entertainment magazine Variety - read movie, but powers onward in the games by film and TV executives - has been world... Primitive and mechanistic reviewing CD-ROM titles over the same attempts to achieve convergence and period. That's market credibility. synergy should not discredit the idea of Traditional media have woken up. exploiting an idea in different media. But it's not all plain sailing, as Disney Wired recently interviewed one of the discovered when a high proportion of few people who is both a successful movie screen writer and games designer: Mike Backest'. He explained the difference between the two. "The enjoyment of a game is the direct experience of structure. You try to understand the gaming structure, the mechanisms, the trade-offs... Whereas in a film, you don't want the audience to be so conscious of structure. If it is conscious of structure, you've probably lost some ofthe emotional grip." Just as the Hollywood studios hired many actors from theatre when they introduced talking pictures, the established audiovisual sectors are contributing both creatively and financially to the games market, even if they are not the sole ingredient. A good example in Europe is the French pay-TV operator Canal+. It recently set up its own Media Lab to develop digital imaging and Canal+ Multimedia to finance the development of new titles for PC and console platforms, plus interactive TV programming. The motivation is interesting: "TV doesn't really attract young people anymore," says Chine Lanzmann, anchor their Lion King CD-ROMs came winging of the Canal+ Cyberculture TV back to dealers: gamers hadn't been able programme and closely involved in the to get the game to run because of the games venture. Films are the paradigm chaotic incompatibilities imposed by and premium product for today's unstandardised sound and video cards. audiences, but games will be No wonder a UK spokesman for Philips tomorrow's paradigm because of youth's Media Systems recently stigmatised CD- obsession with interactivity and the ROM as "Plug and Pray" compared with downstream impact of video games, as CD-i where the standard guarantees successive generations mature. "Plug and Play." This is a bold statement for anyone involved in broadcasting to make, but Getting beyond Space Invaders there's more. Canal + wants to address Grown-up people need grown-up games both the core market of adolescents and so designers have had to come up with develop a broader consumer appeal for games that are much more sophisticated future games products, beginning in than the "Shoot'em up, blow'em out" 1996. action games in the console market. Apropos, one of the starkest features Simulation is one of these new of the console video games segment is categories: Sim City allows you to take its bias towards adolescent - or even over the running of a major city and younger - mides. What about women? adjust variables like population, taxes, "Young girls don't play console video investment... and you have to answer to games because their brothers the voters for your decisions, as in real monopolise the machines and none of life. the software fits their taste - or their faster pace of development," argues Lanzmann.

8 l&T MAGAZINE There are exceptions. Tetris, an early in order to have more programmes in "It's the razor blade philosophy: give Nintendo gameboy involving geometric the dawning digital era. Broadcasters away the razor and make your money shapes, had female appeal. currently spurn high definition on the blades," he opines. Perhaps it is a Women have much better access to television, the ultimate large-screen, sign of maturity that both Nintendo and PCs when grown-up and the card game high-impact TV format. Sega have been criticised for this Solitaire is very popular. This is bundled Meanwhile in games, the transition approach in a recent report by the UK with every Windows system shipped and from simple two-dimensional depiction competition authorities. is rumoured to have helped many DOS of characters and settings to computer- And the video games business is users to migrate painlessly to Windows, rendered 3D is well underway. The maturing fast. It's inconceivable that the a miniature example of the effect games relaunch of Nintendo's Donkey Kong in business won't impact the information may have in schooling people for the 16-bit computer rendering was recently society. Already traditional media are wider range of interactive services in the hailed by the press, but is just a adapting: broadcasters crave information society. foretaste of things to come since it was interactivity; MTV's visual style mimics For Europe, the opportunities clearly scaled clown from an unreleased next video games; movies are being edited to lie on the content side. Encouragingly, generation 64-bit version. a faster pace for the younger generation the star of this years E3 show in Los Gazing into the future from Paris, accustomed to the pace of interactive Angeles was Virgin's Heart of Darkness, Chine Lanzmann reckons that the entertainment. The density of job developed in Paris by Eric Chahi's team ultimate future of video games lies in advertisements in the games press is an at Delphine Sofware. This displayed the interactive broadband network systems. impressive testimony to growth... and so-called "French Touch," a cinematic "On-line will ultimately kill today's the promise of interactivity more look and approach to story-telling. Chine formats based on packaged media; the broadly. Lanzmann reckons that the opening multi-player possibilities of wide-band Amid all the talk of G7 projects, we sequence - which sets the scene and are much greater, and that will attract should also keep an eye on how the hooks the player - is as good as anything women." video games market develops. The Disney has produced. This has already begun in a small superficial often masks the profound in There are many games developere in way, with the Sega Channel tested on real life - just like a strategy game UK as well, including Rare, responsible US cable nets. Games are downloaded really. ■ for Donkey Kong and equipped with one via an insert which replaces the of the finest networks of Silicon cartridge in the games unit. Sega has Adam Watson Brown DG XIII - A4 Graphics work stations in Europe. already reported encouraging results So far European companies are from these trials. Cable companies were European Commission optimistic about their prospects. There impressed both by the level of utilisation 200, rue de la Loi (BU9 01/91) seems to be room enough for all and a reduction in churn between the B-1049 Brussels cultures to contribute to the games "Basic" tier of services and "Extended Belgium themselves. Hollywood is already Basic" containing the Sega Channel. tel: +32 2 296 90 06 contributing but is far from dominant. If Meanwhile, Nintendo will participate in fax: + 32 2 296 90 09 there's room for Japanese Manga comic British Telecom's customer trial of e-mail: Adam.Watson [email protected] books to inspire games, there's plenty of video-on-demand in 2,500 UK scope for European creativity to make a households this summer... and there are strong and diverse contribution to the plenty of games on the Internet. < '' Moore's Law states that the number of global games market. For the moment, Virtual Reality is transistors on a chip doubles every two just being as a tool for market years or so. The capacity of memory chips More impact in future positioning, rather like "Digital" labels quadruples with every generation, about The idea that better technology will on consumer electronics products every 2-3 years. Computer power increases expand the video games market by which are mainly analogue but contain inexorably therefore. enabling more creative games and some digital processing. (2) "Shape Shifter," interview with Mike widening the new medium's appeal is a "True VR is about ten years away," Backes by Ron Martinez in Wired, April recurring one. Last year Sony organised according to Yoeri Geutskens of Philips 1995. an enlightening series of presentations Media, "It's a matter of processing for Commission officials on music, power and appropriate LCDs for the There seems to beroom enoug h movies, TV.... and videogames. head mounted device." "The video games industry is He has recently completed an for all cultures to contribute to targeting broadcast image quality," said internal study on video games for Nick Garnell of Sony Electronic Philips and sketches the changes in the the games themselves.... Publishing, "because greater realism will industry structure that are taking place. enable the market to make the The value chain has come to resemble If there'sroom fo r Japanese Manga transition from niche consumers to the audiovisual. Instead of vertically mass market." integrated games companies, there are comic books to inspire games, Picture quality delivers impact and developers and publishers just as there realism to gamers. It is ironic that the are independent TV producers. Budgets there's plenty of scope games companies have discovered this for games development have soared as just as broadcasters themselves seem high as $6m and its still cheaper to film for European creativity to make set to sacrifice broadcast image quality or video certain types of live action than to synthesise the same thing in the a strong and diverse contribution computer. Hardware is a means to an end in the console market. to the global games market.

l&T MAGAZINE 9 Telecommunications for disabled and elderly people A market opportunity and a social challenge

TELECOMMUNICATIONS are a crucial present both market opportunities for component of social and economic life the telecommunications industry and for all citizens, and Europe's disabled social challenges for policy-makers. and elderly people, making up about These issues have been examined by the 20% ofthe population, are no exception. MART study (TP1113), one of the Indeed, for many disabled and elderly projects funded under the EU's TIDE people telecommunications take on programme (see boxes on p. 12 & 13). special significance. Telecommunications applications Meeting demand: and services - ranging from the humble a market and a social issue voice telephone to advanced multimedia An optimal mix of market, regulatory communications - can be vital in and social forces can ensure that the enabling independent living in the necessary telecommunications services community, making information and are available, accessible and affordable communication possible in ways that for elderly and disabled people, and that match the abilities of the individual, and the opportunities presented by the opening up new opportunities for information society are open to all. access, participation and socio• On the market side, the telecom• economic integration. munications industry must develop a Although collectively a large better understanding of the elderly and subscriber grouping, elderly and disabled market. This is a large though disabled people have widely varying somewhat differentiated market, interests and needs. Their diverse comprising not just elderly and disabled requirements for telecommunications people as independent consumers but also health and social services. Creative and flexible approaches to télécoms infrastructure provision, service development and tariff structuring will be necessary to meet all of the needs. On the regulatory side, the current re-definition of universal service obligations will need to consider these differentiated needs in a detailed way. Meeting the requirements of elderly and disabled people is more than just a question of cheap or subsidised voice telephony. Social policy will also have a role to play. Implementation of anti• discrimination legislation will place new requirements on telecommunications service providers and information providers to make their services accessible to people with physical disabilities. Financial subsidies under Distance learning social assistance schemes may also be

1 0 l&T MAGAZINE Some Applications of Telecommunications for Elderly and Disabled People

Interpersonal Relay, Conversion, Remote Care Services Communication Alternative media Activities and Support

Voice Text telephone relay Information access Alarms/security

Text Video telephone relay Teleshopping Social services

Video Text interpretation Transactions Telemedicine Special media Electronic Telework Navigation support newspapers and Distance learning books

TV (closed) text Entertainment captions and leisure TV audio description necessary in some cases to ensure that reading over the telephone network by open up new opportunities for important services are affordable. hearing-impaired people, is an example employment and education, such as A co-ordinated approach to all of of R&D activity in this area. telework and distance learning. these aspects, at both EU and national Examples of TIDE projects in these levels, will be necessary if the promise Relay, conversion and alternative areas include AVISE (TP1251) and of the information society is to inedia COMBAT (TP1135), which are become a reality for elderly and To communicate freely with another promoting the development of telework disabled Europeans. person or to access information and for people with disabilities, and INSIDE mass media services, some people with (TP1150), which is developing on-line Applications of telecommunications disabilities may need special facilities information services for elderly people. for disabled and elderly people on occasion. For example, a hearing- In addition to all of the applications of impaired person using a text telephone Remote services and support interest to the general residential or video phone may require relay Many elderly and disabled people need subscriber, there are also a variety of (or interpreter) facilities to enable support from formal or informal care applications which can be of particular communication with a subscriber who services if they are to live full and interest for elderly and disabled people. has an ordinary voice telephone; people independent lives in the community. These include alternative modes of with visual impairments may need Telecommunications can play an communication and information access to newspapers or books in increasing role in this area, for example, presentation, the opportunity to carry electronic form so that they can by supporting alarm and other security out activities from the home and remote be "read" by voice synthesisers; and services based on voice or video access to care and other support TV broadcasts can be made more connections, remote social services services. Some of the more important accessible for hearing-impaired or through video telephony, medical applications are listed in the Table visually impaired people through monitoring and consultation via data below. Research and development in text captioning of the speech content and video links. Mobile télécoms also many of these areas is currently and audio description of the help people with a visual impairment to being promoted under the EU's visual content. Examples of TIDE navigate when finding their way about TIDE programme. projects in this area include HARMONY on foot. (TP1226), which is promoting the use of Examples of TIDE projects in these Interpersonal communication accessible structures in on-line areas include ASMONC (TP1228) and Fixed and mobile voice telephony are documents, and SPLIT (TP1215), which MOBIC (TP1148), which are developing likely to remain the core residential is developing a system for automatic systems to support orientation and applications for most elderly and conversion of speech to animated lip navigation; IMSAS (TP1078) and SCALP disabled people. But for some people movements for transmission over the (TP1002) which are developing the nature of their disability precludes telephone network. multimedia and mobile alarm systems using two-way voice communications. for elderly people; and TURTLE (TP People with significant hearing or Remote activities 1194) which is using teletext to deliver speech impairments, for example, need Sometimes mobility restrictions can information on public transport services text telephony or video telephony for make the opportunity to access to disabled and elderly people. interpersonal communication, and some information and carry out transactions people with learning and other from the home especially important for Telecommunications requirements disabilities may communicate most elderly and disabled people. Information These applications vary considerably in effectively through symbolic languages. services, teleshopping, transactions (e.g. the requirements they place on TIDE project IBIDEM (TP1038),. telebanking) and remote access to telecommunications facilities. Different developing a videophone to allow lip- entertainment and other leisure pursuits segments of the elderly and disabled (e.g. video-on-demand) offer new market will be interested in different possibilities. Telecommunications also

l&T MAGAZINE 11 market will be interested in different access is rapidly becoming universal mixes of applications, and their demand throughout Europe, it is still generally The MART Study for telecommunications will vary targeted at the business community, and accordingly. tariffs are too high for many elderly and disabled people. Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) Wideband and Broadband TIDE project MART (TP1113) has The fixed PSTN provides a sufficient Higher levels of access (i.e. wideband or carried out a detailed study of the level of access for many applications. broadband) are necessary to support various applications of Apart from voice communication, it can video telephony at TV quality and on­line i telecommunications which can support text telephony, access to access to high quality multimedia ι benefit elderly and disabled people. information and networking services material or video­based entertainment The study has analysed the (such as the Internet), and low­to­ services. Most current developments for telecommunications requirements medium speed data transmission. In the the residential consumer are asymmetric of these applications, and the foreseeable future, as image coding and (i.e. the video or multimedia is in one extent to which developments in compression techniques improve, it may direction only) offering video­on­ European telecommunications and even support video telephony at an demand or teleshopping services. The in social provisions will facilitate acceptable level of quality. Although the arrival of switched public networks their dissemination and take­up. It PSTN is almost universally accessible providing full two­way (symmetric) has produced recommendations for throughout Europe, household broadband access to residential those who have a role to play in this penetration is still well below 100% in subscribers remains a distant prospect. area. Some of the key elements some countries, tariffs vary widely recommended for EU policy are: across the Member States and costs can Value-added and information services still be a banier for some disabled and As well as an appropriate level of • co­ordination across policy lines, elderly people (most people with connection, value­added network especially telecommunications and disabilities and many elderiy people services and information services are social policy remain in the lower income group). Line also important. New facilities such as •consideration of the quality, connection to a digital exchange automatic text­to­speech and speech­to­ differentiated needs of elderly and and a touch­tone telephone can be text conversion in the network could disabled people important for some applications and provide great benefits for people with • detailed provisions for elderly levels of service in these areas vary hearing, speech and visual impairments. and disabled people in universal considerably across Europe. Existing services like abbreviated service and anti­discrimination dialling and "Hotline" can support alarm legislation and regulations Mobile Access systems and make dialling easier. • promotion of "design for all" This is becoming increasingly popular However, the media used in value­added approaches and standards to among residential subscribers in some services and information services must ensure accessibility countries. For elderly and disabled be accessible for people with • encouragement of affordable people, cordless telephones around the disabilities. For example, text displays prices and support for ability to pay home can be of great benefit, and of voice­based announcements and • dissemination of information and cellular networks are becoming audible caller identification are encouragement of innovation in important for keeping in touch with important for deaf people and blind employment, education, and the carers or contacting emergency help. people, respectively. The potential social and medical services Analogue cellular networks now cover offered in these areas is still under­ • monitoring of the social impact most of Europe and digital networks are utilised and many services remain of the information society. expanding rapidly. However, although inaccessible to people with particular tariffs are falling in the face of sensory disabilities. MART participants: competition, they are still often set at Work Research Centre, Ireland premium levels which are beyond the Conclusions (coordinator); means of many disabled and elderly Developments in telecommunications IDATE, France, people. are opening up new opportunities for empirica, Germany. European citizens. R&D activities under Integrated Services Digital Network the EU's Telematics and TIDE Further information: (ISDN) programme are encouraging innovation A summary of the results of the For some elderly and disabled in technologies and applications which MART Study is published in a consumers, important applications will can exploit this potential for the benefit series of 6 brochures. These require the higher levels of access of elderly and disabled people. address policy makers, the provided by ISDN. Basic rate ISDN can Appropriate consideration of the needs telecommunications services support reasonable quality of these groupings in EU industry, equipment providers, on­ videotelephony (e.g. for sign language telecommunications and social policy line information providers, user communication between deaf people), will be necessary if both the market and organisations, and social service fast and cost­effective downloading of the social benefits are to be fully providers. large volumes of text (e.g. electronic realised. ■ books for people with visual The brochures are available from impairments) and new opportunities for Egidio Ballabio TIDE programme, the TIDE Office: collaborative working and interactive DGXIII-C5 Fax: +32­2­2990248; learning at a distance. Although ISDN Kevin Cullen MART project, e­mail: [email protected] Work Research Centre, Dublin

1 2 l&T MAGAZINE Mobile support for navigation on foot

TIDE and Telematics

In the European Community today In addition, a number of horizontal Line 2: Compensation for Impaired there are some 60 to 80 million disabled activities intended to increase the Functions or elderly people. Information and impact ofthe research undertaken have Area 4 communication technologies can make been initiated. One of these horizontal Applications of Manipulation a strong contribution to improving the activities is the MART project, and Control technology quality of life of disabled and elderly (described on previous pages). Area 5 people. This is the aim of TIDE, the After the Bridge call for proposals, Technology supporting restoration Telematics for the Integration of TIDE became part of the Telematics and enhancement of function. Disabled and Elderly unit of the Applications programme. Telematics Telematics Applications programme. is the combination of information and If you would like more information During 1993/1994 TIDE completed communications technologies. It is about TIDE or the Telematics 21 pilot phase projects in the areas within this programme that TIDE has Applications programme, please of general models and tools, launched a 3rd Call for Proposals, contact: manipulation and control, personal which opened on 15th of September e-mail: [email protected] communication, safety and daily 1995 and closed on 15th January 1996. [email protected] support, and access to information. The workplan now covers two lines fax: +32 2 299 0248. For the call for proposals in April subdivided in five areas: 1993 for the so-called bridge phase, a total of 293 proposals were received. 55 Line 1: Access to Technology & Services projects and horizontal actions were Area 1 selected for funding with the 42 Mecu Access to Information and available. These Bridge Phase projects Communications Technologies (to be completed by the end of 1997), Area 2 cover the four action lines of the work Integrated systems supporting plan: access to communications and the activities of independent information technology and support for living, education, work, leisure, interpersonal communications; control mobility and training technologies; restoration and Area 3 enhancement of functions; and Information and communication integrated systems technologies. systems for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of services supporting independent living.

l&T MAGAZINE 13 Giant magneto resistance: an ESPRIT project for the home electronics market

LESS THAN TEN YEARS after its phenomenon, appropriately discovery, the giant magneto- called the giant magneto- resistance (GMR) effect will resistance effect (GMR) since be introduced in read heads in a relative resistance change digital magnetic recording of more than 100% is possible consumer products like hard depending on the magnetic disc systems and tape field applied. Professor A. recorders. This development Fert with his collaborators of will enable them to cope with the University of Paris-Sud the increasing storage in cooperation with the requirements of coming Thomson Research multimedia applications. Laboratory in Paris, and The following article has Professor P. Grünberg with two parts, the first describing his researchers at the KFA the ESPRIT project on GMR, research institute in Jülich, and the second (largely Germany, discovered this inspired by an European effect in layered thin films Information Technology (multi layers), which consist Observatory report of 1994) of magnetic layers, separated giving an insight into the home by non magnetic layers. electronics market in Europe, The thickness of these where GMR will play an individual layers is only a few increasing role in the future. recording. In the consumer market, nanometers, some tens of atoms and Philips introduced this read principle sometimes even less. In the current Successful cooperation in its Digital Compact Cassette magneto-resistive heads, the thickness between industry and research consumer audio system (CD-quality of a single layer is in the order of a few The magneto-resistance effect music on tape). tens of nanometers, i.e. a ten times Current digital consumer products like In today's digital products, however, thicker. This contributes to a much digital tape recorders include advanced the maximum relative resistance change higher resistance change in the multi• thin-film read heads to read the digital to variations of magnetic fields in the layer system. information. These are made with a materials used is only 1-2%. For further The researchers then concentrated technology similar to semiconductor IC progress in bit density in the second half on development of material systems in technology, using a sequence of of this decade, sensing materials which this effect would occur even deposition steps and structuring exhibiting a greater magneto-resistance under small magnetic fields, making the lithography on a micron scale. effect will be essential to enable weaker technology attractive to a wider range The sensing element of the read head is magnetic signals to be read. of products. a very thin layer of magnetic material Furthermore, the use of the PC as a sandwiched between two non-magnetic multimedia workstation in the second Applying GMR materials. The magnetization direction half of this decade will require a drastic After the discovery of the GMR effect, in this layer is influenced by the pattern increase in the required storage many questions especially related to of magnetization on the disk or tape capacity. A higher area bit density in practical applications of the effect were close to the sensing element. hard disk recording is brought about by raised. Can materials with even larger The variations in the magnetization decreasing the track width and the bit resistance changes be found? Would it induces changes in the resistance of this length of/on/in the recording medium. be technically possible to produce such layer, and consequently as well A consequence of the decrease of bit thin-layer structures reliably enough for variations in the voltage output as a size is, however, that the magnetic commercial use? Can these be applied current is applied. This effect is called signals in the read heads are weaker. in sensors? How would magnetic the magneto-resistance effect (MR). This creates the need for more sensitive recording systems benefit from these The technology to make sensors magnetic sensors. more sensitive read heads? Are other based on this effect was introduced in applications possible? the early nineties in commercial read The discovery of the GMR effect heads for hard disk and for digital tape In 1988 two European research groups simultaneously discovered a new

1 4 l&T MAGAZINE In order to answer such questions, a track width, an increase of signal-to- ECU. This difference in national wealth, European consortium was formed in noise ratio, and an increase in the coupled with a much larger 1992. A European project was the number of tracks that can be recorded homogeneous market where household preferred approach to develop this and read in parallel. 'brown' goods and now computer technology further, because it holds the GMR devices can also be used in equipment suitable for the home have best guarantee that this breakthrough many other products where magnetic always been less expensive, has will first and foremost be of benefit to fields are used, such as in cars and in contributed to the greater penetration European industry. robotics. They can be made lightweight of appliances, equipment and services Major European industries active in and very small. For example, MR in US households. the fields of magnetic storage and field sensors are very attractive in Whereas 88% of US homes own a sensors, the discoverers of the GMR automotive applications for anti-lock VCR and 35% rent at least one video effect, and groups which are highly brake systems (ABS). tape per month, the comparable figures specialised in the preparation, analysis The use of the GMR effect could lead for Europe are 64% with VCRs, but only and magnetic properties of artificial to a further miniaturisation. Its main 22% rent with the same frequency. materials based on layers with atomic- advantage, the increased sensitivity, may In Italy for example, only 46% of homes scale thicknesses are all involved in thus be used in different ways: in data have VCRs and less than 5% of these this project. and video recording to increase bit rent "top-ten" movies on a regular basis. Philips, Siemens, Thomson, KFA densities, and in sensor applications for Few fax machines are found in Jülich Research Institute and the further miniaturisation. The advantage European households. Germany with universities of Paris-Sud, Erlangen, of the use of the GMR effect in the 1.3 million home faxes has twice as Eindhoven, and Louis Pasteur at Digital Compact Cassette, where the many as any other European country. Strasbourg are collaborating on the recording format (track width, They are located mainly in home offices project. It is called Study of Magnetic bit length) is standardised, is in the or where employers have funded Multi layers for Magneto Resistive reduced power consumption of the equipment for teleworking. Sensors (SmMmS), and was launched recording head. This is of particular By far the most interesting electronic by the Long Term Research Unit in DG importance for portable, battery- device to be found in the households is III-F of the European Commission . powered equipment. the PC. Already 35% of US homes have At the international 1994 It is expected that GMR will be PCs installed and nearly all of them are Intermag/MMM on magnetism in introduced in hard disk heads by 1997. IBM PC-compatible or Apple Albuquerque, New Mexico Philips The total sales are estimated at 180 computers. By contrast, in Europe presented the first very promising million heads per year at a price around where the UK has the largest percentage results on read heads for tape recording $8 per head. Assuming then that GMR of homes with computers (22%), only based on GMR materials. These new will be used in 5% of the heads in 1997, 12% of these are old multifunction sensor elements were shown to be one the market of GMR-based heads will be machines like those of Atari and order of magnitude more sensitive than $70 million. The increase in market Commodore or UK-specific computers comparable single-layer sensors. share, and the increase in the size ofthe such as those made by Sinclair or At the same conference, IBM market, could bring the market for GMR Acorn. In Italy, 12% of households have presented first results on GMR-based based heads in 1998 to $200 million. IBM and Mac-compatible PCs (but again read heads for hard disk recording. an extra 5% have only Ataris or Amigas). Japanese groups are also very active in The European home electronics Germany has a 15% penetration and this field, and the companies Fujitsu, market France has 13%, but with negligible non• Hitachi and NEC have presented GMR applications business compatible machines and the GMR-based read heads at the To illustrate the potential for GMR highest percentage of Apple systems. 1995 Intermag Conference in San uptake in electronics, we need to look at Antonio, Texas. the home electronics market. Let us first The emergence of the interactive home define this: it encompasses the home in CD titles are compact discs containing a The future the widest sense, including both home software application that allows a user In addition to digital tape and hard disk business and consumer use (households to interact with a particular mix of text, recording, an important potential field activities, education, games, etc.). graphic, image and audio content that is of application of heads based on GMR Underpinning these new and stored on the CD-ROM. The content materials is found in linear digital video emerging markets is the basic could be a game, educational or recording. The present analogue VHS demographic structure of households in reference material, a simulation of some recording makes use of the so-called each country. real or fantasy environment, musical or helical-scan technology, which is at the There are more European visual entertainment or a set of tools for moment the leading edge of tape households (135 million) and people a work-related task. recording in terms of performances. (365 million) than the 253 million people A suitable multimedia platform is However, it will probably not be able who occupy just under 97 million US needed to play back the content of to cope with the huge data rates households. In fact, in the five largest CD-ROMs. Many alternative home for high-definition digital-video countries in Europe (France, Germany platforms have been proposed, and a recording at a reasonable cost and (West), Italy, Spain and the UK) which few of these now have a sufficiently with sufficient reliability. form the focus of this report, there are large installed base to earn the attention To make linear digital video nearly 300 million people living in more of publishers. recording, an attractive alternative, than 100 million households. CD titles are important because they considerable technological advances However, the US national per capita will provide the first real consumer are required, including a reduction of income of 17,145 ECU is greater than market for multimedia technology. that in the Member States and 70% more than that in Spain where it is only 10,170

l&T MAGAZINE 15 Number of households in 1994 with electronic equipment:

1994 France West-Germany Italy UK

VCR 15 200 000(64%) 19 500 000(65%) 9 400 000(46%) 18 500 000 (88%) 1 | PC 2 850 000 ( 13%) 4 500 000 ( 15%) 2 400 000 ( 12%) 4 785 000 (22%)

Fax 650 000(3%) 1300 000(4%) 400 000(2%) 435 000(2%)

Unlike other proposed multimedia ■ The range of interactive titles entertainment and reference available is spreading beyond games to opportunities, revenue can be earned encompass all forms of education, from CD titles without the need to build reference and leisure activities. a complex network infrastructure linked ■ On-line services for consumers are to committed home subscribers. becoming accessible and easy to use, However, commitment from publishers, allowing new communities of people authors and distribution channels, is with shared interests to gather in "cyber essential if the full potential of the titles space" to develop new ideas and market is to be realised. friendships. The one major interactive, digital ■ Movies, sports events and a whole consumer market to develop to a range of television programming will significant size by the end of the 1990s soon be available on demand at start will be that for CD titles. It will be times to suit individual users. driven by an explosion in the installed ■ A wide range of home-shopping base of CD-ROM drives on home services is planned, helping home users computers and a publishing community to learn about products and services, awakening to the vast potential of this locate sources, browse, compare prices, market. From an installed base of less make purchases and arrange delivery. than a million drives at the end of 1993, These applications will present major to just under three million a year later, new revenue opportunities for IT this market will grow more than ten-fold suppliers at the end of the millennium over the next four years. and beyond. One of the significant However, titles are expensive to elements in IT will be the application of produce, and publishers need to be the GMR effect. ■ assured that their title could be sold to a large installed base of platforms with Dr R Coehoorn Pliilips drives able to read a "standard" Nathalie Richier DGIII-F1 CD-ROM format. The three contenders for this role are the home PC with CD-ROM drive, and two classes of Contact: product that play through the domestic Prof. Dr. R. Coehoorn television CD-based derivatives of Philips Research Laboratories existing games consoles and new, Prof. Holstlaan 4 custom-designed CD consoles. Bldg. WA-1-1-53 Over the next decade, our ability to 5656 AA Eindhoven interact with PCs, televisions and other The Netherlands home appliances could cause tel: +31-40-742693 revolutionary changes in the way we all fax: +31-40-743352 work, relax, shop, learn, and have fun. E-mail: coehoorn @ prl.philips.nl The necessary technologies and standards are in place, regulatory Esprit Programme Information Desk attitudes are becoming favourable, and European Commission in many countries the installed base of 200, rue de la Loi (N 105 8/94) devices and delivery networks is already B-1049 Brussels sufficient to enable the first wave of tel: +32 2 296 8596 home interactive applications to be fax: +32 2 296 8388 delivered. e-mail: [email protected] http://www.cordis.lu/esprit/home.html

1 6 l&T MAGAZINE The Frankfurt Book Fair A showpiece for cyberpublishing

FIRST HELD IN 1560, only a few technological innovation; on line generations after Gutenberg, commercial services in Europe; the Frankfurt Buch Messe the central role of the Internet is traditionally the most and the active presence of the important international book Commission. and publishing event. It was relaunched in its present form in The major publishing groups: 1949, and in 1993 it became the prime movers in multimedia Frankfurt Book and Electronic applications in Europe Publishing Fair, joining the As one might suppose, it was Cannes MILIA and Intermedia in the major groups which San Francisco as one of the generally dominated the New principal annual gatherings of Media section ­ publishers the "new content" electronic and (Bertelsmann, Burda and multimedia business. Hachette), press groups In 1993 multimedia and (Pearsons, Frankfurter electronic publishing occupied Allgemeine Zeitung and only a few stands. In 1995 they Springer), data bank operators were represented by 1229 stands (Dunn and Bradstreet, Knight and 5,500 exhibitors, almost Ridder and Dow Jones). three­quarters of the total area of The powerfully impressive the exhibition, and a living and diverse presence of demonstration of how these Bertelsmann matched its once diverse businesses have ambitions as the world's third converged. The "Neue & largest communications group Elektronische Medien" section (after TW Turner and Disney­ brought together the publishing ABC). It covered the whole giants (Bertelsmann, Pearsons, The event also confirms the crucial spectrum of new digital services ­ on­ Hachette, Burda, Warner Books, etc), a role of the publishing business in the line services (AOL), publishing and substantial representation of the development of new digital services. distributing CD Roms, managing audiovisual and computer industries, More than the television and film enriched data bases, electronic and a significant number of SMEs in industry (indirectly represented as the magazines, supplying turnkey services, publishing, multimedia product Kirch Group by their CD Rom and rights etc. An interesting and relatively recent distribution and electronic services selling subsidiaries), and the telecom point is the federative role played by suppliers. According to the organisers operators (still prohibited from multimedia in a traditionally very the section was the best attended at investing directly in new contents), it is decentralised company. Bertelsmann the Fair and drew most of the in fact the publishers (publishers, press only regrouped its multimedia activities 330,000 visitors. groups and data bank operators), who in July 1995 under a managing director This transformation in two years have branched out from their traditional and introduced the Bertelsmann multi of a glittering star in the Gutenberg specialties, maximised content and now media logo which dominated the Galaxy into a showplace for are the prime movers in the business of Frankfurt Fair. cyberpublishing is a direct consequence new digital services. The other major publishers such as of the extraordinary vitality of the Two days of interviews covering Burda, Hachette, Pearsons and Springer German market for the new media. The most of the Neue Medien (New Media) were testing a variety of new electronic country now dominates European and some of the lectures offered at the markets and were represented by: statistics on multimedia equipment, the Salon served to bring out the following ■ their CD Rom publishing subsidiaries production of "new content" and the eight developments: the involvement of (such as Navigo, a joint venture level of use in business and by the the major publishing groups; the role of between Burda and the Kirch Group's general public. SMEs in multimedia publishing; the television system, Pro 7). localisation of American products as compared with European production;

l&T MAGAZINE 17 ■ their scientific and professional data digital environment seems to constitute banks (Springer MultiMedica), a decisive advantage in some of the ■ their participation in on­line services start­ups encountered at Frankfurt. for the general public (Europe on Line) These small CD Rom publishing or for selected audiences (Fun on Line, companies were represented by a few a subsidiary of the publishing titles in progress or beta testing (even, house Egmont). in the case of a Berlin SME, by a Among the principal players, one demonstration version of a single title) should note the modest level of and claimed to have taken advantage of Hachette Multimedias presence. It was the Book Fair to look for additional only represented by its German financing, strategic partners and distributor, Bomico. This confirms the distributors. They are often modest in French publisher's disengagement from size (2 to 10 people). Decidedly on­line services and its strategic European in the design of content, their reorientation towards the Internet marketing approach and the make­up of (providing services for the professional their teams these SMEs experiment markets and the general public). with original strategies such as: ■ the simultaneous up­stream SMEs: structural diversity and development of versions in several commercial vitality languages. This is more cost­effective An even more conspicuous than the a posteriori localisation of phenomenon at the Frankfurt Fair than finished products; the presence of the major publishers ■ simultaneous up­stream was the plethora of small publishing and development on several platforms (Mac, multimedia service companies. In the PC, CDI), each porting­over adds from United States most of the CD Rom titles about 20 30% to the total budget); which, with a few exceptions such as ■ a targeted approach (with strong Encarta, go on to dominate the best­ identity on a number of titles); or, seller list with cult titles such as Myst, conversely, a scattershot approach the Seventh Guest and SimCity are intended to get a foothold in several produced by small companies, start­ups markets at the same time (from games and private labels rather than arcades to the cultural market and the commercial software giants. including 'edutainment'). Likewise, in Europe the digital environment currently seems to favour SMEs: a web of new European service the emergence of a network of energetic providers for the digital environment SMEs actively developing niche The numerous SMEs present at markets, particularly in CD Rom and Frankfurt as electronic service the provision of services. providers are another indication of the The structural and linguistic diversity vitality of the multimedia services of Europe, in fact, far from constituting sector. In fact, the development of the the insurmountable handicap it does in multimedia market and, more recently, traditional audiovisual production, in a the expansion of the commercial and general public applications of the Internet have given rise in Europe to a whole galaxy of small companies which specialise in outsourcing and providing niche services of every kind: ■ multimedia guidance and production for businesses which wish to develop their multimedia activities (training, promotional activities, etc.); ■ access to the Internet for businesses and private individuals; ■ managing commercial activities on the Internet (building and operating Web sites, managing financial transactions: fulfilment; user tracking); ■ developing user-friendly author tools itself as an Internet service provider) ■ the advanced migration of for publication on the Web; and Bertelsmann (whose subsidiary Tl distribution circuits from software and ■ marketing and publicity guidance for was offering turnkey solutions for computer shops to libraries and new supports (CD Rom embedding, businesses which want to get into supermarkets; designing publicity campaigns on the electronic publishing), ■ various remote loading projects for on-line services, etc.); ■ the predictable explosion in Europe multimedia software via digital ■ Cyberpublishing on the Internet of commercial on-line services (offering television decoders (Premiere, Sega (defining and using communities of private individuals simplified access to Channel); interest, royalty problems, etc.). the Internet and one-stop shopping for ■ the creation of integrated marketing Among these niche services, a business users to set up and manage lines on the model widely followed with number of recently launched companies their electronic store fronts), edutainment titles in the United States specialise in software localisation, the and above all (Club Kid Soft, etc). Thus Fun on Line, adaptation of multimedia products for ■ the arrival of the telecom operators, a subsidiary of the Egmont group, different language markets. This is more the natural intermediaries for access to launched at the Frankfurt Fair, includes complicated than dubbing or subtitles commercial and public applications of a monthly cyberculture magazine for for the traditional audio visual products. the Internet. children, Fun on Line; an on-line It involves the translation of text files, service specially designed for children and in addition it frequently requires Localising American products versus (with supervision of the content, reformatting graphics and even the European production: towards a new parental control and preset limits on cultural (or pedagogical) adaptation of balance? charges); a centre for CD Rom tests content. Such SMEs have so far mainly At the last MILIA American multimedia done by panels of children and parents; made a living by localising American products completely dominated the rapid order circuits (impulse purchases) products, but in recent months they scene. At the Frankfurt Fair, in sharp for software by on-line remote loading have developed crucial skills in contrast, European content was or de-blocking CD Roms. localising European products to strongly in evidence with the vitality and As a group, the distributors and economic conditions outside their power ofthe distribution ofthe Gemían producer-distributors we met original language market. All of the multimedia industry well to the fore. (Klett/Heureka; Bomico; Burda companies we encountered (ME&TA, A rapid analysis of the catalogues Interactive; Markt & Technik; Cornelson Translingua, etc.) said that they were of CD Roms available on the Software; Ullstein Soft Media) now diversifying their activities in that German market showed that it is, confirmed that, in their opinion, the direction as exportable products effectively, divided into four equally American products suitable for the appeared on the European market. important segments: German interactive multimedia market These niche services, scorned by the ■ 25% non - localised American will be progressively replaced by major operators as a cottage industry products (original versions); European products and particularly by and, on the other hand, talked up in the ■ 30% American products localised German titles. magazine The Net as the basis for a for the German market (much higher Despite the "quality tyranny" of service industry which meets a demand than the average for the other numerous transatlantic titles (Myst, not satisfied by the major operators, European countries). This percentage Cai-men Sandiego, SimCity, KidPix, collectively represent a considerable demonstrates the language resistance of Grolier Encyclopedia), those we spoke economic interest. the German public, reinforced by a long to all expressed their determination to Given the predictable explosion of tradition of dubbing traditional increase the proportion of German such services (Paul Kagan Associates audiovisual products. In the sector of products, which are preferred by the estimate that the market for equipment specifically 'edutainment' products the public, in their catalogues. Cornelson for the commercial use of the Internet percentage localised is close to 100%; Media, for example, which localises in the United States alone will be $700 25% original German products, and Broderbund and The Learning million in 1998), the question is whether 20% European titles localised for Company edutainment titles for the these SMEs will be able to stand up to the German market or in the German market is planning to double its the following: original version. own production of German titles next ■ the inevitable appearance on the As compared with other European year. Ulstein Soft Media, too, which scene of the major operators such as markets, the strength of the distributors Hachette (which is already positioning in the field of electronic publishing, as in traditional publishing, is the major asset of off-line multimedia in Germany, and they operate aggressive distribution strategies: ■ catalogue sales of CD Roms are general with bundling (packaging several titles together); ■ samplers have become common: demonstration CD Roms which offer the option of unlocking the programme on payment by correspondence;

l&T MAGAZINE 19 since its establishment 18 months ago innovations which are crucial to the The central role of the Internet has been mainly occupied in localising démocratisation of multimedia In addition to on-line services, the popular science titles (Red Shift), is production. Internet dominated the Frankfurt Book actively reorienting its activities towards Voice recognition. Several competing and Electronic Publishing Fair, just as it European titles. systems were demonstrated (IBM Voice did the Geneva Telecoms 95 Salon in the In both cases, these developments Type and Dragon Systems Dictate) and preceding week. are occurring despite the problems confirmed the high performance level of The Internet was central in inherent in producing multimedia tides voice recognition technology. Voice discussions of the future of publishing. in Europe emphasised by those we recognition has emerged from the There was open conflict at Frankfurt. spoke to - the excessive demands of laboratory and the realm of science On the one hand, the publishers argued European copyright holders based on an fiction and is now securely anchored in for the "industry's experience in over-valuation of the electronic commercial reality, particularly in the organising information," know-how publishing market, the surcharge for production of interactive applications. "without which neither traditional nor multiple localisations and the absence Intelligent software. Adobe Systems electronic publishing could exist." of venture capital. The same policy is demonstrated its powerful Acrobat (A particularly vocal representative of being followed by the multimedia communications/PAO software for the the publishers even went so far as to subsidiaries of the major groups such Internet and two new programs, suggest that academics should stick to as Navigo (Burda), BMG Interactive Pagemill and Sitemill, were introduced. managing their departments rather Entertainment (Bertelsmann) and They make it possible to create pages than experimenting with publishing on D&K Interactive (Dorling Kindersley). and sites on the WWW from traditional the Internet). Each of them, at Frankfurt, launched an PAO software without using On the other hand, the proponents of ambitious catalogue of European HTML language, a confirmation of the cyberpublishing stressed the titles covering all sectors of multimedia growing user-friendliness of author "revolution" involved in publishing on publishing (games, reference communications tools and their impact the Internet. It replaces the traditional works, edutainment, science, medicine, on the development of commercial mass or niche publishing markets with a finance, etc). Internet applications. new reality of communities of interest. Lastly, as a sign of the globalisation Internet publishing "represents a of markets (and the difficulty of Commercial on-line services take off challenge to both authors and applying geographical criteria in the in Europe marketing specialists." new digital environment), the Frankfurt Officially launched at Frankfurt and In that context, the alliance between Fair demonstrated the growing commercially available in Germany EUnet, one of the principal access importance of international co- from 1 November, the AOL/Bertelsmann providers to the Internet in Europe, and productions (such as those announced service marks the start of on-line Open Book systems, an Internet by the Voyager Company, based in both commercial services in Europe. It also publisher based in the United States, New York and Paris, with a series of confirms the remarkable progress illustrates the interdependence between European developers), and the achieved in the content of on-line network operators (who need content) creativity of new financial and services and their accelerated and content providers (who need publishing assemblages (like the development in the direction of services access). Open Book Systems and EUnet remarkable children's CD Rom The related to on-line video. AOL Europe launched the publication of Nelson Journey of Thomas Blue Eagle consists of a number of areas (AOL-US, Mandela's autobiography at Frankfurt. It produced in Singapore, based on a text AOL Deutschland, AOL-UK, AOL France was accompanied by a vast body of by a Sioux author, by the Franco- initially) and is distinguished by its graphic, sound and textual documents, Singaporean CD Rom publishers TG particularly user-friendly interface accessible to and enrichable by users. Media/Daichi, premiered at Frankfurt (more akin to TV or video games than This is a demonstration of the trend in and relocalised in France by Nathan.). the traditional on-line aesthetic), its traditional publishing towards visual richness (AOL will be fully distributive publishing, "From Copyright Technological innovations: available on sites in an ISDN/modem to Cogniright." user-friendliness and empowerment 160,000 baud configuration), its use of In economic terms, the growing Unlike Telecoms 95, the Frankfurt Fair, European languages and the presence of significance of the Internet in European was primarily devoted to content. a rich European content. publishing was confirmed in Frankfurt Nonetheless it offered an opportunity to Like MS/Net, regarded as its chief not only by the involvement of the major confirm the impact of technological competitor, AOL/Europe also offers a unified environment characterised by seamless navigation between the on-line and off-line applications, the various proprietary areas and the Internet.

2 0 l&T MAGAZINE publishers in WWW applications content and building up a powerful, The FCC has declared that "the (corporate promotion, launching competitive business ­ in sharp contrast Internet is the key stone of the global publications, the interface with with the film industry which is far more information society" (Susan Ness, FCC distributors and bookshops, etc.) but fragmented, unevenly capitalised and Commissioner, 7 October 1995). The also by the development of a new sector largely dependent upon national and American administration is of SMEs. Those operate at the European support mechanisms. Its systematically highlighting the intersection between traditional competitive situation compared with the superiority of the Internet approach in publishing and distribution and the United States is also very much less the social and educational fields (Bill provision of Internet services favourable. Clinton announced an initiative on (bibliographical searches, book orders, Although, in general, American 21 July 1995 to connect all California support for the launch of new titles, multimedia products still predominate, schools with the Internet by the end of representing authors, etc.) particularly in certain segments such as the year, and every class in the country edutainment, the German market, which before the year 2000). American digital The active presence of the Commission is by far the most developed in Europe, information firms are developing In confirmation of its involvement in is already showing signs of a reversal in technology and testing commercial both the traditional fields of information the trend towards national and strategies to take the best advantage of and communications and in that of the European products. As one of those I the "global network par excellence." new media and electronic publishing, spoke to pointed out, "the European CD This is not a time when Europe should the European Commission was Rom business has only a two­year lag to spare itself the effort of serious thought represented this year at the Frankfurt catch up with New York and Silicon on the subject. To do so is to risk leaving Fair by two stands. One was in the Valley, not thirty years like the European the political and economic initiative to International Publishing section and the cinema compared with Hollywood." others. other in New Media. DGXIII­E also Most especially, it would be useful to organised a workshop on the topic of reflect upon the articulation between "EU Opportunities for Electronic the Internet phenomenon and the Publishing Support." various initiatives launched by the This was led by Franz de Bruine, Commission, particularly in the context Director of DGXIII­E, and provided an of trans­European networks and the opportunity to: information society. ■ ■ recall the Commission's long­ standing involvement with the field of Patrick Vittet-Philippe DGXIII strategy, beginning with the organisation of DGXIII's first workshop in 1993, the Contact: year in which electronic publishing first European Commission made its appearance at the Frankfurt 200, rue de la Loi (BU24 01/37) Fair; B­1049 Brussels ■ present the possibilities for support Belgium available to the business under the Tel:+ 32 2 296 90 56/86 49 various programmes of the community Fax: + 32 2 296 17 80 and the Information Company, particularly the Info 2000 initiative; ■ go over with Brian Blunden, Chief Executive of IEPRC, and Paul Ormerod, Director, Meta­Generics Ltd, the two studies launched by DGXIII on the future of the media and advertising (the The Internet: a political and economic Admedia Project) and the impact of challenge to Europe? technology (the Information Quite apart from the effects of fashion, Engineering 2001 Project). the Internet constitutes a major social and economic phenomenon in Europe Multimedia publishing: as it does elsewhere. It is a phenomenon an encouraging situation which cannot be ignored. The Frankfurt Fair confirmed the Far from being an "American decisive commitment of the European network" as was suggested by the press and publishers to the multimedia European Parliament until very recently, and new digital services sector. They are the Internet provides a base in Europe investing actively in infrastructure and for an economic sector which is still small but entirely real, and takes in service providers, software designers, publishers, etc. The sector will grow stronger with the securitisation of electronic transactions and the commercialisation of the Net which is well under way.

l&T MAGAZINE 21 Venus becomes goddess of the seas?

Unexplained losses of bulk cargo When loading tankers, the European carriers and a number of serious distribution of the load within the vessel accidents on the high seas have been is another equally serious problem - but proliferating since 1990 onwards. of a different nature. Tankers can have software makes The combined toll: 34 incidents with up to fifty different cargo tanks, in 250 deaths, 18 vessels lost and 16 which from one to twenty or even thirty seriously damaged - an unacceptably different types of cargo have to be shipping high human, economic and envi• arranged while meeting all the ronmental cost. Something had started operational and safety constraints. to go badly wrong. Finding a solution to such problems industry safer In fact, the underlying cause of these was becoming imperative, and - thanks 34 marine disasters was structural to software - the Greek company weakness in bulk carriers, according Helintec SA found it. Dr Koumbis, to a Lloyd's Register survey. Helintec's managing director, had the One hypothesis suggested that the expertise to provide a solution: an culprit might be the stress inflicted on Automatic Load Optimisation package ... the structure ofthe vessels during cargo with the help of Venus. loading - a critical operation in the top range of vessels, some with a carrying capacity of as much as 400,000 tonnes.

2 2 l&T MAGAZINE VENUS and ANKO ■ What is the maximum cargo Venus'" was produced as part of the quantity/quantities vessel A can take recently finished Esprit project, given a number of operational AFRODITE (Applying Formal methods constraints? to Real­size Object­oriented Design in ■ What if the ship has to take part of Technical Environments). Venus will be the cargo in port PI and complete marketed both by the French company loading in port P2, given, again, a set of Verilog and the Institute of Applied operational constraints? What is the Computer Science (IFAD), in Odense, maximum cargo it can then load? Denmark. ANKO is an Automatic To help answer such vital questions, Optimisation Load Planner software several elements are essential: package developed by Helintec using experience, good knowledge of the Venus in the AFRODITE project, and vessel and a substantial amount of time. has promising prospects under its The number of feasible solutions commercial name of Autoplan. increases exponentially with the number of tanks of the vessel. It also Precision counts depends on the number of grades that First of all, ship loading is a safety­ the system is asked to handle, as well as critical operation. Human lives, the the ratio of the cargo to be carried per fragile environment and valuable vessels grade to the vessel's capacity per group. are at stake. Second, it has major econo­ The investigation process for the mical implications, and it is not only the identification of a proposed solution value of the ship that counts. Indeed, includes a large amount of repetitions, often the cargo can be more expensive as sometimes trial and error is the only than the vessel. Another factor is way to find the best way to load, within the very high cost of structural all the technical contraints and repairs needed if an inappropriate requirements. Among the most typical loading operation were to damage constraints met in practice are, for the vessel hull. example, the draught and trim restric­ ANKO therefore had to be totally tions in the port of loading or discharge. reliable and satisfy stringent require­ The decisions taken have an obvious ments, and the loading solutions found economic significance, as well as an needed to be completely accurate. obvious impact on the vessel's safety. In addition, it had to deal with: Once a vessel's cargo capacity is con­ ■ complex engineering computations firmed, any variations in this can either ■ multiple constraints like the maxi­ raise claims from the prospective mum shear force, bending moment charterers, or result in unused capacity draught or trim (dead freight) which can result in loss ■ IMO (International Maritime of income for the owner. Organisation) stability requirements Also important for the operators is ■ different types of load, ie fuel, the level of stresses to which the vessel chemical liquids, etc. structure is subjected. Excessive loads on the vessel will lead to early Finally, it had to provide optimised deterioration of the hull structure, loading plans with an immediate re­ which usually translates into large sponse time while ensuring their accu­ maintenance and repair costs after racy and reliability. several years. This was the challenge which Thus, the rapid investigation of Dr. Koumbis met successfully with the cargo­loading enquiries under help of Venus, which supported the operational constraints must combine specification of ANKO and achieved the making the best possible use of the pro­ very high standards of reliability and posed solution, enabling the maximum accuracy required. In addition, ANKO or specified cargo to be taken and has already been successfully tested subjecting the vessel structure to with 70 vessels and 15 customers. minimum stresses. This is inevitably a practical problem for ship operation. Problems in ship operation The solution to this includes defining Ship operation, in everyday practice, the cargo quantity to be loaded in faces problems and enquiries which each particular tank of the vessel. have to be handled accurately and Large vessels (such as VLCCs ­ Very within an extremely tight timespace. Large Crude oil Carriers)) may have a Such situations most frequently relate to carrying capacity of 400,000 metric typical questions such as: tonnes and as many as 40 or fifty ■ Can vessel A take any specified cargo quantity or quantities, and satisfy, at the same time, a set of applicable opera­ tional constraints?

l&T MAGAZINE 23 different tanks. In this respect, the constraints, the system automatically definition of a loading condition of the selects from among the different vessel, so that it takes a specified (or the segregations and displays those suitable maximum) cargo quantity and meets for the case under consideration. the operational constraints, is a For each particular trip made by a combined minimisation problem. vessel the user can specify a number of The objective function is based on conditions or restrictions, namely: stress considerations, while fulfilment ■ the quantity of cargo or quantity per of International Maritime Organisation grade, or an instruction to the system to stability requirements, as well as load the maximum possible cargo from the practical limitations of a given trip, one or all grades. also have to be taken into consideration. ■ the bunkers, either as a total or their Plainly any software dealing with this distribution in the vessel tanks, issue needs to be highly reliable, as not whichever is available) only are substantial economic interests ■ as an option, the maximum at stake but a group of users for whom allowable ballast quantity to be loaded complete reliability and trustworthiness ■ the API (American Petroleum would be the most important criteria Institute) loading temperature per grade when considering whether or not to of oil, (the system has built in the tables use ANKO. of the American Society for Testing and Materials and the Institute Automatic load optimisation system of Petroleum) The searching employed in the Load ■ the need for the compartment(s) to Planning is essentially a generate­and­ remain empty, or a prohibition on the The development of Venus has test algorithm combined with a system altering the loading constraints propagation technique. of compartments been partially funded by the Explicit and "hidden" engineering ■ draught restrictions, if any, and criteria are used to guide the search desired trim and trim range European Commission under by the use of backtracking where ■ maximum desirable operational necessary. Once a feasible loading shear force and bending moment for the ESPRIT III programme in the combination has been found, then a the vessel, as a percentage of the classical constraint optimisation maximum allowable area of Information Processing technique is used to find a local ■ water density (which varies optimum, ie the best possible solution according to the presence of chemical Systems: "Applying Formal to a specific localised problem. or minerals eg oil, or the mix of Comparison of local optima results in a freshwater with seawater, as in brackish methods to Realsize Object- "global" optimum for the given set coastal waters) of constraints. The Load Planning algo­ The system then carries out an oriented Designs In Technical rithm used has proved to be extremely exhaustive search of alternative loading efficient and impressively stable. scenarios with different cargo segre­ Environments" (AFRODITE). The system is designed to give ­ gations (whenever applicable), and within seconds ­ reliable answers to gives loading arrangements which can everyday practical problems of loading first make the best utilisation of the tanker operators. It accounts for one or available capacity per grade of cargo multiple grades of cargo and any and per vessel trip; second, result in number of different vessels. minimal stresses on the ship's hull; and Vessel segregations (ie the groupings third, fulfil all the given criteria and of tanks within a tanker) can be stored operational restrictions. All the permanently and/or deleted, if neces­ necessary vessel­related information re­ sary. After the definition of grades, quired for load planning is included in quantities to be loaded and operational the system.The software system also provides a wide range of utilities to the user.

2 4 l&T MAGAZINE Emerging perspectives procedures for its integration in the The developed load optimisation software production cycle can be application is software designed to ad­ established and tested, in order dress real­life situations, provide to assess the cost­benefit trade­offs practical solutions, and increase involved. ■ efficiency in shipping markets, ­ which represent a particularly Dr.A.Koumbis General Manager, important sector for a number of HELINTEC. European countries. Alejandro Moya ESPRIT, DGIIIF/4 Formal methods (VDM++ in this case) and Venus proved to be a suitable platform to ensure consistency in Contact point: software design and data flow definition, HELINTEC as well as to provide improved Alkyonis 16 control over the software implemen­ GR 175 61, P. FALIRO tation process. Greece Venus was used for the design and Dr Koumbis, General Manager specification of ANKO, showing its Tel: +30 1 988 6583/4/5 applicability in developing real­life Fax: +30 1 988 5651 industrial applications which are complex and critical from the reliability For further information: and safety points of view. Institute of Applied Computer Science In the future, it is envisaged that (IFAD), Denmark more market­critical processes could be http://www.ifad.dk/products/venus.htmI automated with the assistance of this leading­edge technology, provided that '" VENUS is based on the combination of a rigorous development environment (the Ob­ ject Oriented Formal Method VDM++) and the industrial standard OMT (Object Modelling Technique), implemented in LOV/OMT This is a software environment for software analysis and specification, which included three graphical editors (Object, Function and Behaviour editors), and is a product of VERILOG, France. It offers features such as the graphical specification of Object Oriented Systems, and the generation of fully executable C++.

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l&T MAGAZINE 25 Re-engineering new patterns of work: a holistic approach

Business Process Re-engineering (BPR), corporate transformation and corporate restructuring are viewed by many senior managere as essential for corporate survival. However, the initiatives that result from them are often dreaded by most of the people who work throughout these same organisations. Must BPR inevitably be regarded as a threat'? How might the 'image' of BPR be improved? More importantly, what needs to be done for people to feel, and become, the beneficiaries rather than the victims of BPR?

The corporate treadmill Organisations should exist to access, develop, harness and apply the collective capabilities and potential of people in pursuit of such goals as profitably identifying and delivering whatever represents value to customers. In terms of rationale and purpose a particular form of organisation ought to be a means to an end, and yet too often organisations appear to develop a life of their own. Keeping an organisation afloat becomes an end in itself, and one that may demand extraordinary levels of sacrifice and denial as the speed of corporate treadmills inexorably increase. Management teams across Europe are working long hours to keep alive structures and operations that may no longer have any compelling rationale or distinctive purpose. If they ceased to exist, what would the world actually lose? Often very little would be lost. People would just go around the corner and buy something similar from someone else.

Management evangelism Into this world of struggling and dying organisations and insecure, sweating people has burst the new management terminology of 'restructuring,' 'delayering,' Outsourcing' and 're-engineering.' Much hyped and promoted with evangelical fervour, their propagandists use the rhetoric of revolution and promise radical improvements in performance and productivity.

2 6 l&T MAGAZINE Yet all around us what is happening tend to involve layoffs and 'headcount existing employees upside down. It can appears as more of the same. Costs are reductions.' It is little wonder that a also create new opportunities for small cut and people seem to be working ever growing number of organisations are and medium-sized enterprises to harder rather than more effectively. seeking to avoid the use of the cooperate and collaborate. Are the new techniques and term BPR in view of its negative Of course processes can be re- approaches mere fads, or simply connotations. engineered. This is the 'territory' of BPR, excuses to sell a new generation of In the main, the perception is that but most re-engineering exercises fail to consultancy services? Could their BPR is 'done' to people and they are not take account of new ways of working application actually enable people to sufficiently involved in the process. BPR and learning. Processes Eire changed but 'work smarter' rather than just harder? projects tend to be 'top down' and to be Could we use them to create new driven by organisational imperatives. businesses rather than merely slim Relatively few BPR projects involve There are many options for down old ones? 'green-field' exercises, new ways of While people struggle to keep up working and learning, or result in radically improving how we can with an unending flow of corporate the development of new strategic initiatives, there are also various capabilities or the creation of new access, develop, harness and emerging technologies such as EDI, markets or services. Most initiatives multimedia, virtual reality and concern business and support apply people's commitment and inter-active television to consider. processes rather than direction setting, How could they enable us to operate management or learning processes. talents. more effectively? Do they necessarily Goals such as improving the quality favour the large enterprise over the of working life, 'taking the heat off smaller business? people' or creating more creative generally not how, when, where, and cultures are few and far between. with whom people work and learn - the COBRA keys to liberating more of the potential To answer these and other questions, New models of people. The re-engineering of learning the European Commission asked a team It need not be this way. For example, the processes rather than of current of over 20 experts to examine what is COBRA team found that substantially business processes generally has more happening across Europe with the greater involvement and participation of a long- term and strategic impact - actual application of BPR, emerging can significantly improve the when it occurs, - which is surprisingly technologies and other means of acceptability of BPR outcomes without rarely, given the amount of rhetoric corporate restructuring. The project necessarily increasing the devoted to the learning organisation. was called COBRA - Constraints implementation time. There are also Patterns of work and approaches to and Opportunities in Business many options for radically improving learning can be, and are generally, Restructuring: and Analysis. The results how we can access, develop, harness changed quite independently of process of this year-long project have just been and apply the commitment and talents re-engineering, and the appropriate published by Policy Publications as 'Tlie of people: introduction of a new way of working Responsive Organisation: Re- There are new models of organ• or learning can have a much more engineering new patterns ofivork. 'W isation such as 'virtual corporations' or significant impact upon performance The COBRA team examined more 'network organisations' which could be than 'improving processes.' than 100 examples of European re- adopted and which are more flexible On the whole, new patterns of work engineering projects. 'Tiie Responsive and responsive than the relatively such as teleworking are much more Organisation' presents a holistic bureaucratic forms we have inherited favourably regarded than BPR. Often methodology and tools framework that from the past. While they present new the people within organisations will synthesises the experience and lessons management challenges, they may be press for them. They are more likely to for re-engineering practice and new 'more fun' for those who work within be viewed as offering benefits for both ways of working, along with 21 detailed them, and hence more conducive of an organisation and the people who case studies and various briefings, innovation and learning. They can also work for it. including notes on 101 specific tools enable smaller organisations to When properly addressed within the and techniques. successfully compete against those context of a BPR exercise, new ways of So what did the COBRA team find? which are much larger. working can greatly increase the value Overall, most applications of BPR are Rather than stop - as most BPR and acceptability of re-structuring concerned with the improvement of exercises do - at the boundary of an and re-engineering outcomes to both existing processes and relatively short organisation, they could embrace the an organisation and its people. term savings of cost and time. They do whole supply chain. 'Network re- The methodology in 'The Responsive engineering' focused upon the supply chain and with an emphasis upon changing how organisations interact in the marketplace, has enabled radically new services to be introduced without necessarily turning the worlds of

l&T MAGAZINE 27 KEY TO FIGURES Figure 1: The six main steps of the COBRA methodology

establishing the Figure 1: approach and goal setting The COBRA methodology for business process re-engineering runs through six distinct phases, yet it is a process without opportunity an end. Once a business process has been k seeking re-engineered, its performance must be process redesign monitored with a view to improving it even ■► more. The methodology can be used in one of two t ways: process analysis implementation of a) as a stand-alone methodology in its own changes right for BPR projects, especially those which include new patterns of working; b) as a complementary methodology to be used in conjunction with a proprietary or ♦ in-house methodology. In this role, the performance COBRA methodology is designed to shed monitoring new light on the existing one especially by reviewing new patterns of work, including lission of the E jroDean Communitie s. 1994 teleworking.

Figure 2: Figure 2: The different kinds of processes in an organisation In a traditional hierarchical business investors/sha reholders organisation different kinds of processes can be re-engineered. Learning needs to be built into any re-engineering process to ensure that people have the capacity to change into the future.

management processes Figure 3: Re-engineering can take place at a number of levels - a sub-process, a departmental or cross-functional process, a cluster of VT1TÌ processes, a whole organisation, a complete supply chain, a whole market or, business processes exceptionally, an entire community.

4 4 4 4 support processes

learning processes

Organisation' report is designed to flag on a temporary or permanent up the key questions relating to new arrangement. The key to greater ways of working at each stage of a BPR involvement and to harnessing more of exercise. the commitment and potential of people No generation in history has so many is to allow them to work and learn in options in terms of how, where, when whatever ways suit their needs and or with whom to work and to learn. For preferences, match their natural example, people can work as employees aptitudes and otherwise allow them to or independent contractors, individually be more effective. or with others, in a fixed or mobile mode, at single or various locations, Holistic approaches including at home or neighbourhood More holistic, sensitive and people ­ offices, on a full or part­time basis, or focused approaches to BPR and corporate transformation are needed. Organisations are not machines, but organic communities of living people.

2 8 l&T MAGAZINE Figure 3: The scope of business process re-engineering According to the COBRA team, if more organisations decided that among the main drivers of BPR should be quality of life and employee satisfaction rather than simple cost-cutting, then teleworking could be a significant feature of more solutions, redesigns and re-engineered organisations. ■

Professor Colin Coulson-Thomas Dean ofthe Faculty of Management, and Willmott Dixon Professor of Corporate Transformation, University of Luton

COBRA contact: Prof C Coulson Thomas, Rathgar House 237 Baring Road London SE12 OBE community Tel: +44 181 857 5907 Fax: +44 181 857 5947

The truly flexible organisation does not whose people are encouraged and To obtain the COBRA report contact: have standard ways of working or enabled to focus upon what they enjoy Policy Publications Ltd standard approaches to learning. Let us doing and do best, innovate and 'make 26 West Street consider the more people-centred off' with the higher margin Covent Garden approach its managers might be opportunities. London WC2 9NA expected to adopt. With an appropriate 'front end' in Tel: +44 171 240 3488 place, the virtual or network Fax: +44 171 240 2768 People-centred approach organisation can appear to have a more ■ Its managers begin with a compelling appropriate, welcoming and accessible (') 'Business Process Re-engineering: and distinctive vision of what the capability them competitors many times Myth & Reality,' London, Kogan Page, organisation is trying to achieve, and as large. The customer or user does not October 1995, edited by C.Coulson Thomas, from which they derive actionable goals know, and may not care, where a call is ISBN 07494 1442 1 and objectives. diverted to - across an office or between ■ The next step is to identify the roles continents and network members - so and responsibilities and the skills and long as relevant expertise is accessed capabilities that are required. and a satisfactory response is obtained. ■ Suitable people who possess the Developments in information and required qualities are now identified, communications technologies are whether or not they are already arguably benefiting those smaller employed, and when the desired skills organisations that do not feel obliged to cannot be located inside or outside of use people just because they are the organisation, steps are taken to employed internally. With few develop them. employees of their own, they use ■ Having identified the appropriate emerging technologies to overcome people, suitable contractual barriers of distance, time, function, arrangements are concluded and they organisation, nationality and culture in are then allowed to adopt or create the search for the most appropriate and whatever ways of working, develop or relevant experiences and skills. employ whatever processes, and use or Defining, agreeing and building acquire whatever technologies will appropriate roles, competences and allow them to cost effectively achieve behaviours are the keys to success in their objectives. organisational transformation. Too often The COBRA team found many people develop new models of examples of large organisations in organisations and re-design processes 'commodity product' and other traps while doing little if anything to enable that were struggling to survive, while people to adapt. Structures and flow smaller and more flexible organisations, charts are changed, but not attitudes and behaviours. On occasion, it may be more productive to put the questions of structure and process flow charts to one side and instead work directly upon roles, competences and behaviours. Frameworks can be put in place to develop them.

l&T MAGAZINE 29 o Q)

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