Standards and standardisation are highly effective tools for the European Union to ensure the smooth functioning of the single market. They ensure the interoperability of networks and systems, in particular for information and communications technology, a high level of consumer and environmental protection, as well as more innovation and social inclusion.
In my view it is also important to ensure that the use of standards in support of EU legislation and policies is undertaken in a reasonable and coherent manner, bearing in mind policy goals and the need to establish consistency in all policy areas.
There must be a clear boundary between legislation and standardisation, in order to avoid any misinterpretation of policy objectives, particularly for health, safety and environmental protection. I stress that legal requirements on which standards are developed should be clear and precise.
Standards should be used only to define the technical means for reaching the goals set by regulators and contribute to a high level of protection. The objectives of the standardisation work required in EC mandates should be clearly defined.
It is also important to ensure that the role of standards, and the process through which they are developed, is well understood by all actors, most importantly by EU decision-makers.
I strongly believe that global standards are fundamental to today's ubiquitous connectivity. For example, historically there was no uniformity in the telecommunication technologies that were adopted by different countries, continents and regions. In order to help improve interoperability, different companies participated and over time helped create globally standardised communication technologies.
These technologies ensure end-to-end system performance and worldwide interoperability between networks, devices and network operators.
In addition, telecommunication standards have evolved beyond pure interoperability solutions and today enable global and dynamic ecosystems.
It is against this background that the European Commission is pursuing the creation of a digital single market, where billions of people and devices will be seamlessly connected. This will require high-performing and secure technology standards for 5G communications and the Internet of Things (IoT), which will be developed by innovative companies within organisations that develop standards.
Personally, I am committed to the F/RAND system of licensing standard essential patents. The F/RAND commitment requires standard essential patent owners to offer access to the technology they own on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms.
This system has been widely used within the telecom sector for over two decades and the vast majority of licensing negotiations have been successfully concluded, a clear sign that the system is working.
The current F/RAND system strikes a delicate but important balance between technology contributors and technology users. I highlight that the recent Huawei/ZTE decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is a landmark decision regarding F/RAND licensing.
It provides clear guidelines for negotiations between holders of standard essential patents and companies wishing to implement them. These guidelines should be applied on a case-by-case basis, thereby ensuring the contractual freedom and flexibility needed in fast-moving sectors like ICT.
Additionally, successful 5G and IoT standards will require a tremendous amount of investment, engineering expertise and the capital intensive, years-long development of cutting-edge technologies. In my view, an open, transparent, consensus- based and balanced standardisation framework is therefore needed, to ensure the broadest possible base of companies contribute technology to these standards and an even larger group of companies are willing to implement them in their products.
The European Commission has declared that a balanced framework for standardisation is a key element in incentivising R&D and innovation.
Indeed, to put Europe in the driving seat for the next generation of technology in the 5G and IoT era, it is important that incentives for innovating and contributing to standardisation continue to be encouraged rather than weakened.
Reducing incentives to innovate would likely have a direct impact on the economic potential of the digital single market and the European Union more broadly.
In summary, I strongly encourage the European Parliament to take my recommendations into consideration in my colleague Marlene Mizzi's report on European standards.
Of course, further policy initiatives in this field should not undermine incentives for technology developers to invest in open and standardised technology.
Likewise, they should not encourage a shift towards proprietary technologies that could threaten interoperability between equipment from different vendors, leading to user lock-in and reduced consumer choice.