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{bookmark:url=http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/11/50&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en}The answer is manifold: just try to come up with an organisation that does not use a database or a network today. There can only be very few of this type, if any. All the others are potential users. This means that we are looking at a potentially vast new service industry. Here are great opportunities for strong European telecoms and high tech SMEs. And as cloud users, including public sector organisations, look for better value for money we can expect productivity gains across Europe's economy as a whole. A clear role of governments is also to ensure that European achievements, such as effective data protection and the EU's Single Market, do not clash with cloud computing.

To be sure, the European Commission has done preliminary work over the last few years, such as funding cloud research or analysing the security implications of cloud computing. For example, our European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) has just published a report on this.

Now is the time to bring it all together. As foreseen in the Digital Agenda for Europe, I have started work on an EU-wide cloud computing strategy. This goes beyond a policy framework. I want to make Europe not just "cloud-friendly" but "cloud-active". The first condition, strong fixed and mobile communication networks, is already fulfilled. And as you know, I am very busy improving these further and solving remaining problems such as data roaming.

We can deliver cloud computing by using research and innovation to bring about better clouds. Along the way we can modernise our computing infrastructure and give our SMEs a new platform for innovation.{bookmark}