Hightech Strategy

"IKT 2020" - Research for Innovation

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are the No. 1 innovation motor. ICT drives more than 80 per cent of innovations in Germany's strong application fields and branches automotive, medical technology and logistics. The German Federal Government's High-tech Strategy therefore puts ICT among the most important areas of innovation.

It is up to science, business and politics in Germany to join forces in ensuring that this motor is given a further boost. The ICT 2020 research programme is the contribution of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research for the aspect of "Research Support" identified in the High-tech Strategy and in the action programme "iD2010 - Information Society Germany 2010". It is an offer to science and business to join forces in devising the future of ICT research.

  • Objective and guidelines: the support provided by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) aims to consolidate and expand Germany's technological lead in the ICT sector. Furthermore, the competitive ability of Germany as a place for research, production and employment is to be secured and enhanced by ICT both for specific branches and across different branches. The intention is to pursue a seamless innovation policy addressing all the links in the innovation chain. This also includes improving the access for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to technological know-how. Support activities will be concentrating on technology developments and processes with special economic leverage, sustain and expand technology leadership and integrate new services. Focal areas for research have been and will be identified together with science and business, while at the same time pooling research capacities and funds to cover all the technologies involved.
  • Strategic alignment: research support from the BMBF and BMWi will be geared to Germany's strong application areas/branches where innovation is driven to a great extent by ICT. Together with the ICT business itself, these include automotive, machine construction, medicine, logistics and energy. The key prerequisite for innovation in these areas consists of (applied) research and development results in the basic technologies electronics and microsystems, software systems and knowledge processing, together with communications technology and networks. ICT support is being aligned to the strategic research and development into "ICT in complex systems" (e.g. embedded systems), "new business processes and production methods" and "the internet of things and services". Here it is necessary to focus on the quality objectives economic efficiency, security, user-friendliness and efficient use of resources, because this is the only way in which the strengths of German ICT research and the traditionally high international standing of German engineering can be transferred to ICT solutions from Germany.
  • Instruments and focal areas: the aim is to create bridges between technologies and applications/branches so that research results can be turned into economic success. Innovation alliances are to be concluded between all the various stakeholders, particularly in science, business and politics. On the one hand, vertical cooperation (lead innovations) will be geared to certain applications/branches with specifically coordinated support contributions from technology areas. On the other hand, there will be horizontal cooperation (technology alliances) pursuing technological objectives stipulated jointly with science and business, together with service platforms. In addition, consideration will also be given to providing SMEs with a greater share in innovation, as stipulated by the High-tech Strategy. To this end, the research campaign "Software Engineering 2006" resulting from the old programme "IT Research 2006" will be realigned, with the following structural alterations: support for cooperative R&D projects in SMEs across I&C technologies, simplified funding procedures, formation of a central contact point and shorter periods between submitting applications and the final funding decision / provision of funds.
  • Funds for ICT 2020: according to current budget planning, the ICT 2020 support programme will be provided with funds of just about €300 million p.a. from 2007 to 2011, together with around €80 million p.a. for ICT support from the BMWi.
  • ICT 2020 as a learning programme: the strategic approach of the ICT 2020 research programme is based on a 10-year period and is geared basically to 2020. However, given the rapid development of ICT, the thematic framework for R&D support is initially limited to 5 years. The extremely short innovation cycles in ICT mean that it may be necessary to make additions and shift focal points already within this period. This is why ICT 2020 has been deliberately designed as an open, learning research programme. The presented lead innovations, technology alliances and service platforms together with the focal points and research topics are neither complete nor conclusive. As in drawing up the ICT 2020 programme in the first place, the BMBF will continue its dialogue with science and business when it comes to the updating and further development of the programme. This is the only way to react in good time to technological, economic and social developments and to adapt the corresponding support activities accordingly.