E-BUSINESS

Best practice exchange for SMEs

Enterprise Europe, Brussels, 28 April 2004 – The Enterprise Directorate-General has launched a call through the eBusiness Support Network (eBSN) for proposals to encourage best practice among SMEs. The call is addressed to members of eBSN, a collaborative network for national and regional e-business policy initiatives, which aims to promote e-business for SMEs and share practical experience and information.

The call aims to foster co-operation between e-business policy initiatives based in different regions or countries and representing different stages in the development of e-business. Joint actions will be launched using partnership arrangements, addressing the specific needs of SMEs in one region with the practical experience from another.

Proposals will have to demonstrate a clear relationship between the proposed action and the particular problem, the transferability of the results to other Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries or EEA/EFTA States, and offer measurable performance criteria. Beneficiaries are expected to join the network and actively support co-operation.

Deadline for the submission of the proposals is 4 June 2004.

Please follow these links for more information about:
- the eBSN
- main policy areas in ICT
- the call for proposal