Introductory text

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Whereas:

Article 157 of the Treaty establishing the European Community assigns the Community and the Member States the task of ensuring that the conditions necessary for the competitiveness of the Community's industry exist. Article 151 provides that the Community shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common cultural heritage to the fore.

The Communication from the Commission ‘i2010 — A European Information Society for growth and employment’^f1 announced a flagship initiative on digital libraries.

The Communication from the Commission ‘i2010: Digital Libraries’^f2 (hereafter ‘the Communication’) announced the creation of a High Level Expert Group on Digital Libraries that will advise the Commission on how to best address the organisational, legal and technical challenges at European level.

The White Paper on a European Communication Policy^f3 adopted by the Commission on 1 February 2006 mentions the essential role that digital libraries can play in providing free access to European citizens to information on Europe through information technologies.

The group must contribute to a shared strategic vision for European digital libraries.

The group must be made up of highly qualified experts with competence on digital libraries, appointed in a personal capacity.

The ‘High Level Expert Group on Digital Libraries’ therefore has to be set up and its terms of reference and structure detailed,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: