Digital Infrastructure: Overcoming the digital divide in China and the European Union. CEPS Research Report, November 2017

This study is the result of collaboration among a group of researchers from CEPS and Zhejiang University (ZJU), who decided to team up and analyse the experience of China and the EU in bridging the digital divide. While acknowledging that both China and Europe have undertaken major efforts to reduce socio-economic and geographical disparities by providing network access to ever more citizens, the authors found that investing in physical access alone is not sufficient to enhance inclusion in the information society. They argue that public authorities should also adopt corollary policies to spur social and economic cohesion through innovations that enable disadvantaged regions to catch up with more developed urban areas. In this context, the report calls upon governments to promote digital innovation and entrepreneurship, foster coordinated efforts and adapt their educational systems to the changing labour market

Digital Infrastructure: Overcoming the digital divide in emerging economies. CEPS Special Report, 5 April 2017

Since the 1990s when the internet began to be commercialised globally, the debate on how to close the digital divide has attracted widespread attention. In this Policy Brief, we review the literature on the digital divide in emerging economies with a view to explaining: 1) how internet connectivity promotes social and economic inclusiveness, efficiency and innovation; 2) why the physical access to the internet alone is insufficient to capture the full benefits of digital technology and what other social conditions should be considered; and 3) how to further connect the unconnected population. The digital divide prevents societies from harnessing the full benefits that information and communication technologies can deliver. In this context, actions to foster physical access to the internet remain essential, but they are not sufficient to ensure a truly inclusive information society. Therefore, strong leadership is needed at the global and local levels, to ensure more coordinated efforts among governments, local authorities and actors on the ground. Conversely, maintaining the status quo, while technology progressively pervades every sector of the economy, may critically widen disparities across countries and within national territories. This report offers two sets of policy recommendations: 1) a set of general principles that the G20 should endorse to overcome disparities between emerging and advanced economies; and 2) a set of policy guidelines each nation should follow to bridge the digital divide and foster inclusiveness

Impact of digitalisation and the on-demand economy on labour markets and the consequences for employment and industrial relations. Final Study. CEPS Special Report, August 2017

Digitalisation is transforming business landscapes and the world of work and redefining the boundaries of production, consumption and distribution. This has created tremendous opportunities, as new products, processes and techniques have emerged, but has also created threats, as new ways of employment pose new challenges to employers and employees. The overall consequences for labour markets, however, are still uncertain, which is reflected in the wide variation in the outcomes of the existing research. The initial government responses appear to be reactive rather than proactive, and targeted towards mitigating the side effects of digitalisation instead of aiming to reap its potential benefits

RETRATO SIN IDENTIFICAR [Material gráfico]

Copia digital. Madrid : Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, 201

Supporting study for the Fitness Check on the construction sector: EU internal market and energy efficiency legislation. CEPS Report, October 2016

This study is intended to support the REFIT Sectoral Fitness Check of the Construction Sector, undertaken by the European Commission and expected to be published in the spring of 2017. The Sectoral Fitness Check aims at examining how various EU legal acts impact on the construction sector, and at identifying possible areas of improvement, including reduction of regulatory costs and burdens and a better alignment of provisions, if applicable. The analysis included evaluating the efficiency, coherence, effectiveness, relevance and EU added value of most relevant provisions of EU legislation, with respect to the objectives for a more competitive and sustainable construction sector, in particular for SMEs. Particular attention was paid to identifying any synergy or inefficiencies arising from these acts

Mid-term evaluation of the Hercule III programme. CEPS Research Report, February 2018

The Hercule III programme was established by the European Commission to promote activities against fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. In compliance with Article 13 of Regulation (EU) No 250/2014 establishing the Hercule III Programme, the Evaluation Roadmap prepared by OLAF and the Better Regulation Guidelines, CEPS was commissioned to carry out a mid-term evaluation, together with three other institutes, to assess the relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, EU added value and sustainability of the programme. Based on primary data collected from 574 stakeholders and extensive desk research, the study concludes that Hercule III scores well in all the evaluation criteria. In addition, the programme appears to indirectly contribute to the targets of the Europe 2020 strategy. Therefore, the evaluation recommends the funding of a new edition of the programme in order to sustain the protection of EU financial interests in the coming years. Whereas no major changes would be required in the structure of the programme, it is advisable to introduce certain improvements to enhance the current performance of Hercule III and its future editions. In this respect, the programme should, inter alia, allocate more resources to protecting EU financial interests on the expenditure side of the budget, fighting against corruption and VAT fraud, fostering cross-border cooperation and procuring and making technical equipment available to national authorities

Online Talent Platforms, Labour Market Intermediaries and the Changing World of Work. Independent study prepared by CEPS and IZA for the World Employment Confederation-Europe and UNI Europa May 2018

By comparing the online talent platform economy and the temporary agency work sector, this study aims to contribute to a rapidly growing literature on new forms of work and their impact on the labour market. It shows that online talent platforms and temporary work agencies do have features in common, but there are also significant differences between the two, which make it difficult to use temporary agency work as a model for the online talent platform economy; in many cases, it would not be a good fit. That being said, the call by policy-makers, social partners and other stakeholders for a level playing field should not be overlooked. Furthermore, the study also confirms that any comparison of the online talent platform economy and the temporary agency work sector is hampered by a lack of data. In order to address this issue, continued monitoring and much more transparency of online talent platforms will be needed, as well as further data collection and analysis of both the online talent platforms and the temporary work agencies. These efforts are important because more flexible forms of work are likely to become increasingly prevalent in the future

GUERRA, PEPE Y SRA. [Material gráfico]

Copia digital. Madrid : Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, 201

Study of the atmospheric refraction in a single mode instrument - Application to AMBER/VLTI

International audienceThis paper presents a study of the atmospheric refraction and its effect on the light coupling efficiency in an instrument using single-mode optical fibers. We show the analytical approach which allowed us to assess the need to correct the refraction in J- and H-bands while observing with an 8-m Unit Telescope. We then developed numerical simulations to go further in calculations. The hypotheses on the instrumental characteristics are those of AMBER (Astronomical Multi BEam combineR), the near infrared focal beam combiner of the Very Large Telescope Interferometric mode (VLTI), but most of the conclusions can be generalized to other single-mode instruments. We used the software package caos (Code for Adaptive Optics Systems) to take into account the atmospheric turbulence effect after correction by the ESO system MACAO (Multi-Application Curvature Adaptive Optics). The opto-mechanical study and design of the system correcting the atmospheric refraction on AMBER is then detailed. We showed that the atmospheric refraction becomes predominant over the atmospheric turbulence for some zenith angles z and spectral conditions: for z larger than 30° in J-band for example. The study of the optical system showed that it allows to achieve the required instrumental performance in terms of throughput in J- and H-bands. First observations in J-band of a bright star, alpha Cir star, at more than 30° from zenith clearly showed the gain to control the atmospheric refraction in a single mode instrument, and validated the operating law

An asymmetry detected in the disk of Kappa CMa with the AMBER/VLTI

International audienceAims. We study the geometry and kinematics of the circumstellar environment of the Be star Kappa CMa in the Br gamma emission line and its nearby continuum. Methods. We use the VLTI/AMBER instrument operating in the K band which provides a spatial resolution of about 6 mas with a spectral resolution of 1500 to study the kinematics within the disk and to infer its rotation law. In order to obtain more kinematical constraints we also use an high spectral resolution Pa beta line profile obtain in December 2005 at the Observatorio do Pico do Dios, Brazil and we compile V/R line profile variations and spectral energy distribution data points from the literature. Results. Using differential visibilities and differential phases across the Br gamma line we detect an asymmetry in the disk. Moreover, we found that kappa CMa seems difficult to fit within the classical scenario for Be stars, illustrated recently by alpha Arae observations, i.e. a fast rotating B star close to its breakup velocity surrounded by a Keplerian circumstellar disk with an enhanced polar wind. Finally we discuss the possibility for kappa CMa to be a critical rotator with a Keplerian rotating disk and try to see if the detected asymmetry can be interpreted within the "one-armed" viscous disk framework