Streaming and Online Access to Content and Services

As a result of technological progress in the area of cloud computing and mobile connectivity, Internet is increasingly offering an omnipresent and interactive - ubiquitous - access to information and content. This improved access is, in turn, leading to efficiency, innovation and a significant reduction of the environmental footprint through dematerialisation of consumption, with potential changes in the economic and societal landscape. However, the current legal and economic setting in Europe is leading to a partitioning of mobile Internet access and Internet content along national borders, significantly affecting benefits that could be derived by Europeans from the Digital Single Market and preventing Europe from consolidating its comparative advantage on the global ICT market.