Dr. Ioannis P. Chochliouros Head of Research Programs Section Labs & New Technologies Division,

1. PROMOTING BROADBAND CONNECTIONS & INTERACTIVE CONTENTFOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES IN THE CONTEXT OF MODERN EUROPEAN POLICIES:The case of the D-SPACE Project Dr. Ioannis P. Chochliouros Head of Research Programs Section Labs & New Technologies Division, Hellenic Telecommunications Organization S.A.

2. Thematic Contents • Introduction – The European Context for the Development of an “Information Society for All” • The D-SPACE Project: A Major “Driver” for the Promotion of e-Learning Activities • Broadband Evolution: A “Pre-requisite” for the Effectiveness of the D-SPACE Initiative • Creation & Distribution of Innovative Content & Services • Conclusions

3. Introduction: The European Context for the Development of an “Information Society for All”

4. Introductory Context:Facing Various Challenges for Tomorrow’s Evolution • Information Technologies together with Communication & Media Industries, are currently on the verge of a remarkable “phase” of fast growth & development, in the global converged environment! • Modern ICTs can affect, very positively, the wider European economy for reaching multiple benefits of the “digital era”.

5. Facing Challenges for Tomorrow’s Evolution: A Global Context “Exponential” growth of electronic communication networks & information systems in the recent years: Both they constitute an essential part of the daily lives of the European citizens and fundamental “tools” to the success of the broader economy. Networks and information systems are converging & becoming increasingly interconnected: This optioncreates potential opportunitiesfor all categories of market “players” involved and affects, all sectors of human activity (business, public services and private sphere).

6. Facing Challenges for Tomorrow’s Evolution: Market Opportunities - Extended promotion-deployment-exploitation of a great diversity of electronic communications-based activities in the European (EU27) internal market. - Various technical, commercial & investment priorities for all actors: Governments and private businesses. - Perspectives for“market synergies”in a liberalized & competitive environment. The Scope: ICTs/Internet are basic elements for widespread access to the Information Society for citizens and enterprises, towards designing & developing a modern “knowledge-based economy”.

7. Facing Challenges for Tomorrow’s Evolution: Immediate Benefits New services & products: • increase productivity, • generate new consumer facilities, • advance market competition and • create employment opportunities Innovative applications can: • improve quality of life for all participants (enterprises, households, public sector) • help to avoid exclusion & isolation phenomena…

8. Facing Challenges for Tomorrow’s Evolution: European Policy Responses Stimulating use and creating new services has become the “central goal” of modern European policy objectives,as expressed in core strategic frameworks: • “eEurope-2005” • “i2010”. The Vision: Europe should have modern online publicly accessed services(e-Learning, e-Government, e-Health) and a dynamic e-Business environment, based on the ubiquitous availability of broadband accessat competitive prices, and a secure information infrastructure.

9. The D-SPACE Project: A Major “Driver” for the Promotion of e-Learning Activities

10. e-Learning Actions: A Priority for Europe e-Learning activities are among the most significant priorities of the European “digital economy”,in order to: • Enhance tomorrow’s education • Make stronger Europe’s global competitiveness The use of new multimedia technologies and the Internet can: • Improve the quality of learning by facilitating access to several resources and services. • Support remote teaching exchanges. • Promote international collaboration.

11. e-Learning Actions: A Priority for Europe The Target: Allowing Europe to “take full advantage of its educational strengths” and to “go beyond any potential barriers”, restraining the uptake of digital technologies! Actions: Specific care in the areas of research, innovation, education and training, aiming to increase efficiency efforts by pursuing a more integrated approach and by placing these policies under a common banner: An everlasting European area of knowledge!

12. The D-Space Project in the Modern European Scene The D-Space Project is a core element of the European eTEN Work Program 2004, aiming to contribute to the immediate and effective deployment of services for “AnInformation Society for All”. Vision: Establishment of a modern distributed virtual “network” of science centres and robotic telescopes all over the world, accessed by students, educators, researchers and the wider public (e.g. amateur astronomers, visitors of science parks, etc.) via the universal Internet.

13. The D-Space Project in the Modern European Scene Innovation via the usage of the global Internet: • Development & appropriate usage of a modern web-based interface • Provision of multiple facilities together with a great variety of tools for data manipulation, analysis and access to an unlimited “library of information” and to extended resources/material, for lifelong learners. Facilities: All potential users can continuously enjoy professional-quality data, collected from local sites via the operation of modern broadband facilities, permitting (always-on) on-line connection, at high speed, and supporting multimedia options.

14. D-Space: Opportunities for the dispersion-dissemination of knowledge Potential Benefits: • Enhancement - promotion of science education for a “wider” public. • Enablement of learners to participate in the procedures of knowledge, by designing and carrying out astronomy observations, and creating their own science activities and works. • Offering a great variety of “modern forms” of digital content, from quite “fascinating areas” of scientific sectors. The Project can serve the purpose of: “Making astronomy a popular science for the non-professional users”!

15. Broadband Evolution: A “Pre-requisite” for the Effectiveness of the D-Space Initiative

16. Broadband Facilities for the Effectiveness of the D-Space Project! Essential Features of the Activities performed: • Usage of broadband communication channels as the “basic means” for interaction and data transfer mechanism, between the telescopes and the remotely located users. • Extended variety of on-line services/facilities for end-users. • Guarantee/assurance for effective, always-on connectivity and fast response of all related applications. • Conformance to basic attributes & applied practices of the global “broadband” perspective. • “Alignment” to requirements imposed by modern European policy objectives.

17. Broadband Facilities for the Effectiveness of the D-Space Project! Description of Project’s broadband exploitation: • Broadband communication can create an appropriate “physical backbone” for bringing the knowledge economy to every part of the world - (International perspective). • The ability to generate and use knowledge (through science & skills or people) is the key to ensure that: - Market operators can continue to innovate and compete(productivity, innovation) and; - Citizens can participate more fully in society (better quality of life). • Broadband offers enhanced options in terms of QoS. • Distance education and entertainment/informative activities can become more practical(efficiency) through the combined use of multimedia facilities, in various formats (convergence).

18. Broadband Facilities in a Multiplicity of “Underlying” Infrastructures! • Broadband is currently available mainly over existing infrastructure, in particular over the telephone copper network using ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) technology, and over cable TV networks using cable modems. (Immediate market “adoption”) • Under suitable terms and/or conditions, broadband access can be also delivered over new types of networks(Fibre optic; Free-Space Optics;Fixed Wireless Access (FWA);3G, 3G+, 4G mobile systems;R-LANs (Radio Local Area Networks);satellite communication systems, etc.) (Conformance to future network development) • Unlimited/unrestricted opportunities for several options: - Interoperability - Interconnection - Interworking (No specific or extra infrastructure is required!)

19. Broadband promotes and “affects” Internet penetration • Internet is the most important medium for the transmission of information and communication! • Actions on broadband can further affect the roll-out of Internet-based infrastructures and stimulate the development of relevant content & applications. Major Benefits of Internet’s usage: • “Open” and transparent architecture, allowing various adaptations & modifications; • “Unlimited” opportunities (i.e. high-speed, high capacity); • Ideal “platform” for promoting innovation; • Accessibility by anyone, at any time, from any place! The D-Space service is directly addressing these goals by offering immense opportunities of a “virtual”-innovative research laboratory for knowledge and entertainment!

20. Broadband is shaping European Future… Achieving widespread access by all citizens to new information society services and applications, is a “core” European priority. Accessing services-applications via multiple terminals and by using several network platforms: - Creates significant economic and social opportunities, - advances innovation, - offers freedom of choice and - enhances market competition. These options are all basic pre-conditions for the success of the D-Space Project, in order to serve multiple users, at multiple areas, by multiple equipment!

21. Creation and Distribution of Innovative Content & Services

22. Request for Modern Digital Content: Current Trends The evolution of the “digital era” and the emergence of broadband influence drastically our every-day life, by stimulating access to knowledge and promoting new ways of acquiring information. Although innovation in services is mainly “driven” by • new offerings (responding to customer demands) and • appropriate technology “adoption”, there are increasing claims for new “content”, applications and services.

23. Request for Modern Digital Content: Current Trends & Market Practices Technological advances offer a strong potential to add value to content in the form of “embedded” knowledge and to improve interoperability at the service level, which is fundamentalto accessing and using digital content!

24. Request for Modern Digital Content: The “D-Space Response” Project’s Aims: • Offering “inventive” content from an immense variety of astronomy-related fields, in a fully converged environment. • Offering specific content for educational/learning priorities, to satisfy requirements/needs from different “audiences”. • Creation, updating, distribution and classification of innovative multimedia-oriented digital content in several (combined) formats(i.e. video, audio, films, images, photos, texts, etc.). The thematic sources of astronomical-related activities are practically “unlimited”, and have always attracted human interests, for different reasons!

25. Request for Modern Digital Content in Education: The “D-Space Response” Educational & Teaching Innovations: Opportunities to examine/study live scientific phenomena and experiments. Provision of data from “extended” databases, to satisfy diverse users’ needs (particularly to encourage e-Learning and teaching options). Promotion of (scientific and educational) interactivity and collaboration, to facilitate the emergence of new, Internet-based, applications.

26. Exploiting Content Offerings in the Context of the D-Space Project The Project fulfils satisfactorily essential market challenges for the creation/offering of content,in order to: • Ensure lasting accessibility • Promote development of innovative services. Management & dispersion of content offered, due to its specific nature, can support: • Creativity, • collaborative work, • adaptability, • intercultural communication.

27. Exploiting Content Offerings in the Context of the D-Space Project The entire Project’s effectiveness is to • Make the relevant digital informationmore accessible, usable and exploitable. • Facilitate creation & on-line diffusion of data. • Stimulate content enrichment (in education & training programmes, courses, and self-learning actions). • Promote multimedia-based products.

28. Market Replies to Content Offerings from the D-Space Scenarios Content can support market synergies and advance the emergence of (added-value) services/facilities in a competitive and liberalized environment… Content created in the context of the Project is fully conformant to current European (regulatory and business) requirements and practices… Interoperability, user friendliness and accessibility (at affordable cost), all constitute issues to be considered…

29. Concluding Remarks

30. Conclusions - 1 Education & training sectors are of “prime” importance in the context of the European Information Society priorities. High-bandwidth connectivity and high-quality content (and services), are able to support innovative approaches & methods, immediately applicable in the markets. The D-Space Project supports novelty in the sector of the knowledge-based economy.

31. Conclusions - 2 The D-Space Project supports • usage & exploitation of appropriate broadband communications • development & offering of new forms of interactive content, able to be efficiently accessed on multimedia environments, contributing to learning and teaching activities. Both these issues are at the front-line of the contemporary European policies: They help generate demand for new services They provide means to increase productivity.

32. Ladies & Gentlemen, Many Thanks for Your Attention!