The European Commission has launched a new programme to investigate how members of the EU IT sectors can become global players in the market.

Until September 17th, the commission will be accepting submissions from firms, consumer groups and other industry stakeholders. Based on the information, the commission will then produce an industry-approved strategy on boosting IT in the continent.

The discussion comes as the EU is in talks with the World Trade Organisation. These are focused on improving regulation in the IT industry in the union.

"Our ICT industry in Europe needs to think and be global," commented Viviane Reding, information society and media commissioner.

"While we have been working hard to create a single telecoms market in Europe, we must not lose sight of the global picture.

"There are further markets to take abroad for Europe's ICT industry if we strengthen its competitiveness and remove barriers to trade in third world countries."

Elsewhere in the commission's report, it notes that European IT accounts for 30 per cent of the global marketplace.

In a recent survey of SMEs for Connect, the two most important benefits of outsourcing were 'guaranteed response times' and 'allowing in-house IT staff to concentrate on more strategic issues'.