User-centric approaches in the digital information society: prospects, challenges and limits

摘要

The evolution towards a digital society or knowledge economy has often revolved around economic and technological questions and the effects of national and transnational policies on European industry. Economic growth was and still is the focal point of most European policies. And while European policies are still revolving around the question of how to create optimal conditions for innovation and investment in European technologies and businesses, recent years have also seen increasing attention on the user as a beneficiary as well as an active player in the European Digital Information Society. Partly, this increasing attention on the user can be, at least at the European level, explained by the threatening signs of an accelerating Euroscepticism, and by the urgent need for a political charm attack, to win back the interest and trust of Europe's citizens. Partly, however, it is also the insight that users are critical stakeholders and key players in the implementation of important public policy goals, be they in the area of Information & Communication Technology (ICT), the adoption of new information society services, data protection, the implementation of media pluralism or a competitive internal market for digital services and devices. As a recent study concluded: "users are the key for the next digital strategy. There is a pressing need in Europe to strengthen the user's role and perspective in the Information Society" (Deloitte, 2010).