EC Proposes European Strategy for Smart Radio Tags
March 16, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS
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After a year-long study, the European Commission (EC) unveiled its proposed European strategy for radio frequency identification (RFID). The proposal addresses privacy concerns of citizens and seeks to boost both consumer confidence and Europe's position in a market experiencing 60% growth globally.
"From fighting counterfeits to better healthcare, smart RFID chips offer tremendous opportunities for business and society," said Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding. "The commission's Europe-wide public consultation in 2006 identified a strong lack of awareness and considerable concern among citizens.
The commission's RFID strategy will therefore seek to raise awareness, stress the absolute need for citizens to decide how their personal data is used and ensure that Europe removes existing obstacles to RFID's enormous potential."
RFID - also called smart radio tags - is a technology that involves tags that emit radio signals as identifiers along with devices that pick up the signal and identify the tags. It has a wide range of applications and does not require direct contact or line-of-sight scanning.
The economic potential of smart radio tags is enormous. In 2006 alone, over one billion RFID tags were sold worldwide, and by 2016 it might be over 500 times this number. The European market is estimated to grow from €500 million in 2006 to €7 billion by 2016. Europe is also a leading international player for RFID research and development and its industry is strongly placed.
However, awareness about the potential of smart radio tags is low. About 60% of the 2190 respondents to the EC's public consultation in 2006 (see MEMO/06/378) said they did not know enough to adequately assess the pros and cons of RFID technology. Of those who are aware, 70% believed that technical solutions were the best way to reduce security, data protection and privacy concerns, 67% expressed their support for awareness-raising campaigns to educate consumers, and 55% called for RFID regulations.
To enhance Europe's ability to reap the economic and social benefits of RFID technology while answering consumer concerns, the EC published its proposed RFID strategy on March 15, which outlined the following steps:
- In 2007, the EC will create an RFID stakeholder group to provide advice and assistance to the EC in developing a European policy position concerning RFID applications. This will be carried out in association with, among others, the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party.
- By mid 2007, the EC will propose amendments to the e-privacy directive to take account of RFID applications, as part of the review of European Union telecom rules.
- By the end of 2007, the EC will publish a recommendation on how to handle data security and privacy of smart radio tags to member states and stakeholders. Both the data protection directive and the e-privacy directive set rules for processing personal data that must be respected irrespective of the underlying technologies, and the recommendation will further clarify their application to RFID.
- By the end of 2008, in association with the stakeholder group, the EC will analyse the economic and social effects of smart radio tags and other technologies, particularly focusing on privacy, trust and governance, leading to an assessment of policy options and need for further legislative steps.
The new communication also highlighted that the EC wants to ensure that further development and deployment of smart radio tags are as safe, secure, privacy-friendly and effective as possible. This includes looking at research and innovation, the availability of radio spectrum, standardisation, and environmental and health issues, as well as ensuring that digital identities are well protected against abuse in the emerging Internet of things, where many things around us will be communicating with each other without interaction from us.
EC's proposed strategy has been shaped by the results from a public consultation. During the first phase, the EC held workshops on personal privacy and security, as well as RFID's potential for business and society (see IP/06/289).
The second phase gave everyone a chance to express their views (see IP/06/909). It helped the EC to assess whether Europe needs a conducive and stable policy environment that would encourage companies to invest in RFID, in harmonising standards and in radio frequency allocation, while also sufficiently guaranteeing individuals' privacy and security.
A final conference in October 2006 presented the consultation's main outcomes (see MEMO/06/378). This enabled the EC to report on its assessment and to collect final views before preparing the new communication.
For more information, see:
- Towards an RFID Policy for Europe
- RFID: Europe towards the Internet of things
- Press pack of information: Commission proposes a European policy strategy for smart radio tags
Source: European Commission.