ICT Standards and Regulation Israeli ICT Sector Perspectives

1. 2007 World Electronics Forum ICT Standards and RegulationIsraeli ICT Sector Perspectives Daniel Rosenne, rosenned@netvision.net.il Chairman, Central ICT Standardization Committee, Standards Institution of Israel November 5th, 2007

2. Israel’s ICT 2006 • 182,000 employees 6.5% of total workforce • Sector GDP NIS 62.4 billion 17% of business sector GDP • ICT sector exports $ 15.6 billion 26% of total exports • NIS 16 billion R&D investment Source: CBS, 2007

3. Israel’s Trade 2006Export dominated by high-tech products to large markets By Technology Intensity By Geographical Region North America High tech 48% 31% 21% 13% 37% 36% 18% 15% Medium-low tech European Union Medium- high tech Israel Asia Israel 19% 28% 27% 33% 31% 14% 21% 7% • 2006 totals (without diamonds): • Exports: $29.3 billion • Imports: $34.7 billion • Source: CBS, 2007 Low tech All other

4. Standards Role - Promote Business • Standards as an enabler for networks and services development • Standards as a tool for market development • Conformity assessment as a barrier to trade

5. Standards as an Enabler • Standards support trade and access to markets, shape technology and stimulateproductivity and innovation • Standards promote development, especially in complex high-tech ICT environment • Compatibility / interoperability standards are key enablers for the ICT sector

6. Standards as a Tool • Market fragmentation and decreased productivity caused by conflicting standards • Increased risk and uncertainty due to lack of standards • High costs of being on the wrong side in a “standards war” • Large multinationals always win…

7. Standards for Customer Empowerment • Standards are trusted by their users • Standards are important for ICT services customer satisfaction • Key standardization areas: • Quality of services (QoS) and service level agreements (SLAs) • Truth in billing • Interconnection and compatibility • Customer portability (between service providers) • Cyber security • Local issues - language, common data formats, etc.

8. Conformity Assessment as a Barrier to Trade • Significant proportion of products require conformity assessment in importing country • Supplier Declaration of Conformity (SDOC) and marking prove unsatisfactory • The concept of “one product, one test, accepted everywhere”, is wishful thinking • Israeli approach - mutual recognition: • By conformity assessment bodies • By governments and regulators

9. Israeli ICT Sector Viewpoint • Standards are an important productivity tool • Israeli standardization priority - adoption of international standards • “Original” standardization is limited to unique local conditions (Hebrew language implementation, etc.) • Increased Israeli participation in international standardization efforts, in areas where Israel offers unique technology advantage • Technical regulation should be based on standards • Deviation from international standards should be limited to special cases • National conformity assessment should be reduced to essential public safety requirements • Mutual recognition among conformity assessment bodies, accepted by regulatory bodies, is key for the reduction of trade barriers

10. The End Thanks for your attention