The Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) of the Joint Research Center (JRC) has published a study entitled “The Impact of Social Computing on the EU Information Society and Economy”. The study aims to explain the impact of the so-called Web 2.0’s tools in Europe’s society and economy. According to the study, 41% of Internet practice activities, such as blogging, photo and video sharing, enjoying online multi-player games, uses collaborative platforms for content creation and sharing. However, what is more important is that social computing is also widely used by Europeans to support their work or join communities of interest outside their organisations to improve their knowledge and skills. The study also points out that social computing contributes to improved lifelong learning processes and business competitiveness. As a consequence, the study recommends that European policy-makers create the conditions to spread these practices.

The study can be downloaded at:

http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/publications/pub.cfm?id=2819

Source: Cordis