2009: a great year for Euroalert.net community

An important year for Euroalert.net reaches its end. In 2009, the Euroalert community has established itself throughout Europe and this year has also been full of achievements that we have wanted to share with you from this blog, because our success is also yours.

We began the year announcing you that Euroalert.net had become a case study in the book Web 2.0: The Business Model. . This book on business models in Web 2.0 by U.S. publisher Springer devoted the chapter "Doing business by selling free services" to Euroalert, to describe the innovative features of our business model that allow us to offer you daily and free of charge the best information contents about the European Union.

This has not been the only time that Euroalert.net has served as an example or case study: in autumn and we gave you the news that, invited by the spanish Ministry of Industry, we were participating in a round table on Open Government that took place in FICOD 09 , the International Forum of Digital Contents. "O-gov: creating value through the reuse of public sector information" was the title of the round table in which José Luis Marín talked about how in Euroalert.net we approach public information generated by the community institutions to the user in several countries in Europe , processing it and redistributing it through our innovative technology.

In June, we changed the appearance of Euroalert.net to accommodate it to a new service: the section on trade opportunities with European Multilateral Organizations, with which Euroalert.net continued growing in information contents. Since then, Euroalert.net also offers tenders and contracts published by EuropeAid , publishes business opportunities and contracts of the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the EBRD Tenders and Contracts.

In summer, we boosted our corporate social responsibility while announcing that we became sponsors of the football team of the Colegio La Salle de Valladolid, who wears sweaters with the logo of Euroalert.net. But this announcement came shortly before a trip that was very important for us: the one we did in October to attend the Open Days 2009 in Brussels, where we had the opportunity to cover numerous events and met a good number of community members of Euroalert.


The fact is that this year we have travelled a lot. We wanted Euroalert.net services to be known throughout Europe, and that is why we did not only go to Brussels to attend to the biggest event in European cities and regions, but we've been almost every month in the Belgian capital for various reasons, including our assistance to the Information Day Objective 1.2 ICT in FP7 of the European Union, with the aim of promoting the participation of Euroalert.net in some of the consortia that were being formed for Call 5 of the Seventh Framework Program.

The portuguese capital has been another of our stops. Shortly before leaving for the Open Days, we told you that we were going to Lisbon as well as to promote the services of Euroalert.net and visiting multiple subscribers, as part of the business delegation of Castile and Leon who accompanied Juan Vicente Herrera on his trip to our neighboring country and participated in business meetings organized by ADE International EXCAL, the Junta de Castilla y León agency for external promotion.

In fact, the result of this trip was another achievement of Euroalert.net this year: the agreement for the distribution of Euroalert.net services in Portugal through Infosistema Company.

On the other hand, if last year and created our Facebook page, this year we took the leap to Twitter, where you can follow updates from all contents of Euroalert, although so far only for the international version.

Our successes are your successes. Thanks for all you've got with us this year, and we sincerely hope that next year you will continue giving us many more successes. We have many surprises and new servives ready to make Euroalert even more useful for you all in 2010.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

Euroalert.net... now in Twitter!!

In Euroalert.net we are always up to the minute. It has been a year since we announced you from this blog that we had created our fan page on Facebook.

Now we go a step further and begin using the microblogging service that has even generated a new language: of course, we are talking about, where Euroalert.net has opened a new channel of communication with the community.

Following us on Twitter you will find the headlines of Euroalert.net daily news, the community programmes published on OJEU and calls for proposals as soon as we elaborate them for Euroalert just as they are published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

You can now follow our tweets, as you follow our Facebook page and thus we will have one more way to interact with you, to collect and understand your views on the current European affairs and, as always with Euroalert.net, to keep abreast of the latest news happening in Europe. The Swedish Presidency of the EU is already following our tweets!

Euroalert keeps on crossing borders ... together with Infosistema in Portugal

In September we announced you that Euroalert went to Lisbon to attend meetings and events of the business delegation of Castilla y León that accompanied the President of the Junta de Castilla y León, Juan Vicente Herrera, to the Portuguese capital.

In that mission we had the opportunity to promote Euroalert.net EU information services: business opportunities in the public sector and community funding, in the business meetings that ADE Internacional EXCAL, the external trade promotion Agency of the Junta of Castilla y Leon, had organized.

Well, as a result of our expedition to our neighbour country, we have reached an agreement for the distribution of Euroalert.net services in Portugal through the company Infosistema, with whom we share important values such as commitment to innovation and value creation for our customers. Thus, the service that we provide to Euroalert subscribers in Portugal will be improved thanks to a much closer presence and to the local knowledge that the team of Infosistema will provide us.

As always, we want you to feel participants in this new success in Euroalert expansion, because when Euroalert.net advances and overcomes another barrier, alll of you jump with us. Thank you so much for this new jump!!

Europe around blogs

As you know, in Euroalert.net we bet for the blogosphere as a communication tool that uses the possibilities of the Internet to publish ideas in a mass medium, and this is a way of democratizing information and opinion in a global society.

Therefore, from Euroalert.net we crawled the web looking for new blogs where you can expand your vision on the European Union and its present, and we have updated and expanded Euroalert blogs directory. It compiles both personal blogs and general information and institutional blogs, all of them with the common characteristic of having the European Union as its main axis.

If you write or follow a blog about the EU and want to appear in our directory, please contact us and we will visit it. We will review it for review before inclusion in a future update Euroalert blogs directory.

The reuse of public sector information, in the spotlight in FICOD 2009

Despite starting late, Spain is now on the correct path to Open Government. And it is not the only one: all European countries still have a long way to go before reaching a real open government. That was the conclusion we could draw from the roundtable ""O-gov: creating value through the reuse of public sector information", which was held last November 19 in the International Forum of Digital Contents, FICOD 2009, and where, as we told you, Euroalert.net was one of the guests.

Juan Pelegrin, Chris Corbin, Carlos de la Fuente, Jaime Gómez Obregón, and Angel Maldonado Arce Valentín debated along with José Luis Marín, our director, and they extracted a number of interesting conclusions about the current outlook for open government in Europe and in Spain in particular.

Chris Corbin, financial analyst PSI Platform, stressed that Europe has still a long way to reach real open government. Reuse of content is pre-Internet use, but today, advances in telecommunications make redistribution of public sector information much easier than it used to be.

Corbin underlined that one of the things that most improves the quality of information is the actual use: the more people reuses it, the more likely is that useful and interesting to other people or institutions cases generate. In fact, according to British analyst, it is often the same public who just picking up the information that initially came out of it, so a continuous cycle of information with added value increasing appears.

Juan Pelegrin offered an European perspective of the phenomenon, saying that Spain is becoming an example for other countries in relation to the reuse of content from the public sector, thanks to initiatives such as the Aporta project. Anyway, despite the rapid progress that Europe has seen recently, the gap with the United States regarding Open Government is still important.

Reuse, according Pelegrin, is a tool for economic growth. The representative of the Unit of Access to Information of Directorate General Information Society, stated that the European Commission will ensure that the Directive on the reuse of public sector information is being properly implemented, because although it has already been transposed in all Member States, the laws are not correct in many cases.

The Commission takes it seriously, as demonstrated by the public consultation on reuse. It has launched infringement proceedings against Poland, Sweden and Italy, and it will enhance the study of indicators for better understanding of the evolution of their implementation and investigating the exclusivity agreements that limit citizens its right to access the information, which are illegal.

As for Euroalert.net, Jose Luis Marín described the way we approach the public information of the European Union to end users in several European countries, explaining how our technology brings added value to the contents generated by the Community institutions as well as information about tenders and public procurement contracts and project funding opportunities.

As regards to the statement of our director, Corbin wanted to emphasize that public data that we use are public, and therefore the information issuers entities should not try to control the way that those who reuse its information harness it, and this is a purely cultural fact.

Thanks to all who followed the round table in the room or through FICOD TV (where you can still see the video if you did not had the chance to do it), or live-commented on Twitter our activity! It was a great pride to represent all the community that makes possible Euroalert.net in such an important forum.

Euroalert.net, ready for the panel on open government in FICOD 2009

The International Forum of Digital Contents, FICOD 2009, the biggest event for the digital content industry, has already started at the Palacio de Congresos Juan Carlos I in Madrid. Euroalert.net participation in the roundtable on reuse of public sector information is closer!



"O-gov: creating value through the reuse of public sector information" is the title of the panel in which Euroalert.net will participate as a speaker, and it will analyze the importance of reuse public sector information, an activity that moves in Europe between 26 and 47 billion euros.

José Luis Marín, director of Euroalert.net, will participate in this round table along with several experts in the field of reuse from both public and private sector. The full list of speakers is already available, and it is composed by:

• Juan Pelegrin - Unit of Access to Information of Directorate General Information Society, European Commission
• Carlos de la Fuente - Area Director of Technology CTIC Foundation and representative on the W3C advisory Comitee
• D. Chris Corbin - - Financial Analyst PSI Platform
• Angel Maldonado Elvira - Founder Legalsolo.com
• Carlos Alonso - President of ASEDIE
• Jaime Gómez Obregón - Responsible for El Precio de la Gasolina

David Cierco Jimenez de Parga, Director General for Development of Information Society of the spanish Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism Affairs, will chair the debate on the economic importance of Public Sector Information, where Euroalert.net will explain how it adds value to information about business opportunities and financing projects to create innovative services to all of you.

We wait for you on Thursday November 19 at 15:30 pm in Room 2. You are still in time to get registered in the web of FICOD for free!

Euroalert.net will participate in FICOD 2009 in one of the panels on open government

10,000 attendees, nearly 200 journalists and bloggers, 45 workshops, 28 roundtables, 9 plenary sessions, one Hollywood star ... and we are proud to announce that Euroalert.net will participate in the roundtable on re-use of public sector information (PSI).

The third edition of the International Forum of Digital Contents, FICOD 2009, is coming soon. The 17, 18 and 19 November, the Congress Hall Juan Carlos I in Madrid will be the focus of the present digital content industry in Spanish language, and will have U.S.A., world leader in the industry, as a invited country.

Many media have echoed that Kevin Spacey will present at the inaugural keynote The social network, his biopic about the three founders of the most popular social network of the moment, Facebook. However, for us, the news is that Euroalert will be in FICOD to share its experience adding value through the re-use of the EU public information that you know so well: tenders and public procurement contracts and project funding opportunities.

José Luis Marín, our CEO, will be among the speakers at the roundtable "O-gov: creating value through the reuse of public sector information" which will be held on November 19 at 15.30 in Room 1, and which will undoubtedly contribute to the work that Aporta project began last year. The interim panel includes in this same table Chris Corbin, from ePSI Platform and Javier Hernandez-Ros, European Commission, among others. And there, we will explain how Euroalert.net has adapted its business model, which was documented as a case study in the book "Web 2.0: The Business Model", with a great deal of technological innovation to exploit new opportunities of the Internet: to contribute value to public information for all our readers, customers and subscribers, and then it is reused again in their own websites automatically through our widgets.

With the boost of the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Information Society of the spanish Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, FICOD born in 2007 to promote the products and services from digital contents industry and as to enable the exchange of good practices and experiences among attendees. Red.es is responsible for organizing this great event, framed and funded within the Avanza2 Plan for the Development of Information Society and Knowledge.

Professionals coming from sectors as diverse as television, music, publishing, film, videogames, websites and online publications, online training and many other come together each year in FICOD, their meeting point. For that reason and because of you, the Euroalert community, that make Euroalert possible, we are honoured to be among the protagonists of this year.

We will keep on informing you about our participation in FICOD, but for now remember that you have an appointment with us on November 19! Registration is free and the provisional agenda is available from the website of FICOD.

Innovation, a very sexy thing...

Here we are. The Euroalert.net crowd is already in Brussels is prepared to tell you first hand what happens in OPEN DAYS 2009. And we start from the Charlemagne building, where the Open Days University is being held. Here, we find Pregen Gregersen's conference Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority, of the Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs.



Gregersen has focused his speech, entitled "Restoring growth through innovation", on a shocking sentence: "Innovation is a very sexy thing...". And it's sexy because it can bring many benefits to societies. He has insisted that, fortunately, and despite the recession, the EU structural funds assigned to innovation is a huge amoint, but he says that the key is focusing these resources and apply the results through an efficient regional policy.

Gregersen has not forgotten something that we have always supported from Euroalert.net: new technologies are important for development, but they are not everything. Strengthen the basis, facilitate the dissemination and understanding of these new technologies, foster innovation, investment in human capital and encourage entrepreneurship are key to get a general growth in the European Union from the lowest levels: the regions.

We are glad to see that we are not the only who bet on open knowledge as a way to share progress and growth. And innovation, of course, is part of the knowledge that no one should stop sharing.

Euroalert at B-Creative: Creativity, the secret of growth

As we announced a few weeks ago, among 5th and 7th October the Euroalert.net crowd we will be attending to Open Days 2009 in Brussels. Open Days is the biggest event for Europe's regions and cities, and it will feature more than 100 seminars, workshops, debates, exhibitions and meetings with 7,000 participants, expected in Brussels alone.

And one of the workshops that we are going to specially cover is B-Creative: Creative industry for restoring growth in Europe's regions, which will take place on 7th October at La Cambre, école nationale supérieure des arts visuels.

This event is organized by Lisbon Regions Network & Partners, and it will underline the potential that cultural and creative industries, such as music, fashion, design, architecture, and gaming, offer for EU's economy and competitiveness. Open Days 2009 aim to facilitate exchange, debate and networking among Europe’s experts and decision-makers in regional and local development from the public, private and financial sector, and creative industry is essential for that growth.

The Lisbon Regions Network is a network of 15 ambitious high performing regions with a shared interest in the delivery of the Lisbon Strategy at regional and local level:


Aquitaine Region, Bratislava Self-Governing Region, Brussels Capital Region, Helsinki Region, Land Hessen, Lisbon & Tagus Valley Region, Regio Randstad, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Riga City and Region, Slovenian Business & Research Association, Sofia Municipality, Stockholm Region, Valencian Region, West Midlands and Wielkopolska Region compose this ambitious group of networked regions.

As innovation is a strong value of Euroalert.net corporate culture, we have always bet on creative industry as a key engine for social and economic development, and even more in 2009, which is the European Year for Creativity and Innovation.

We are really looking forward to assist to B-Creative and share experiences about how people and ideas can create growth in our societies, and how can regional governments give a boost to this development.

Maybe we can meet there? Drop us an email to info@euroalert.net

Próxima estação do Euroalert.net: Lisboa!!

If this autumn you are travelling anywhere in Europe, you'll probably meet a member or associate of Euroalert.net, because we won't stop!! We had already told you that at the beginning of October Euroalert.net will be in Brussels to assist to Open Days 2009, but, before that, we are visiting the capital of our portuguese neighbours.

Among 21 and 23rd September we will be in Lisbon to promote Euroalert.net EU information and public tender services, to visit some customers and clients and to participate in events and meetings prepared for the delegation of entrepreneurs from Castilla y Leon that will accompany the President of the Junta of Castilla y León, Juan Vicente Herrera, to the portuguese capital. We will have the chance to meet Portuguese entrepreneurs in the business meetings organized by ADE International EXCAL, the Junta of Castilla y León agency for external promotion.

E agora nossa estréia em português neste blog...: Estamos seguros de que esta viagem será uma oportunidade perfeita para reforçarmos os laços com as instituições e agências portuguesas, e convidamos a todos aqueles de vocês que estejam interessados em ser parte da comunidade Euroalert.net em Portugal e aproveitar as ferramentas da Euroalert.net para a distribuição de conteúdos, informações e oportunidades de negócios no sector público europeu, a que nos enviem um email.

A comunidade Euroalert.net cresce e atravessa fronteiras!

Euroalert does not go on holidays!

As you can see, despite August has arrived and the tendency is often to close for vacations and go to the beach, it seems that this year we will have to go on holiday with the homework that the European Commission has given us. On July 30th the European Commission published several of calls for proposals under the Seventh Framework Program (FP7) in the Official Journal of the European Union ... but not one or two, or even five... a total of ... fifty one!

The Seventh Framework Program for Research and Technological Development (VII FP) is one of our priorities when selecting contents for Euroalert.net. Indeed, as you know, Euroalert.net is working on a proposal to participate in one of the calls that were released on July 30.

So, as always, from Euroalert.net have made the effort to put at your disposal all the calls from FP7 at the same time they are published in the OJEU so you can prepare project proposals either from the beach, mountain or pool.

Because it's August, yes. And everything is closed. But the information is not going on holiday, so we keep putting at your disposal the most current news of the European Union, all the calls for proposals and programmes as well as public procurement opportunities on Euroalert.net website and through Euroalert information widgets of all our subscribers.

You know, enjoy as much as possible this month! But start preparing your projects to send them to the European Commission ... :)

Commercial opportunities with european Multilateral Organizations in Euroalert.net

We are really proud to announce you the recent launch of a new section which will provide you with information about commercial opportunities available in European multilateral organizations, because this actually means that Euroalert.net keeps on growing and adding new contents and information.

Thanks to the strength of this Community you are all part of, and to the confidence you keep on putting on us despite these times of crisis, we can offer you an even better Euroalert.net, with higher quality, more contents and new sections with daily information.

Over the last years multilateral organizations have become a very important target for companies seeking commercial opportunities within their strategy to internationalize their products and services. Winning a contract with one of those organizations is a great opportunity to enter a market or to expand business activity in one country or region. Moreover, trade promotion institutions all over the world have put in place different initiatives within their programmes for internationalization in order to facilitate access to these companies to international tendering procedures.

Euroalert.net couldn't be alien to the growing interest for this market, especially having the opportunity to take advantage of the expertise that our colleagues from the Gateway, S.C.S. Consultancy Division can bring to us. This experience is backed by the qualification granted to provide consultancy services to companies within the ILI Programme of the Spanish National Council of Chambers of Commerce (whose official award announcement in the OJEU was, of course, published by Euroalert.net).

Although tender forecasts, as well as their full tender announcements, awards, corrigenda, etc., were already published in Euroalert.net public procurement and commercial opportunities section, with this new structure we will provide companies with a quick access to the information related to tender procedures in different multilateral organizations, offering a new useful tool to succeed in this quite competitive market.

To give place to this new section, Euroalert.net website heading has been fully reorganised and a new section called EU Funding now replaces the traditional EU Programmes and Calls for Proposals. All the contents related to funding opportunities for projects available under the different European Union programmes and initiatives have been organized within this new tab.

As a complement to introduce the Multilateral Organizations monitored by Euroalert.net, we have also published a page with general information related to International Tendering in European Multilateral Organizations, which will be broaden as this section grows. In addition to general information about how this market works, there is also an overview about the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), as well as the European Commission Co-operation Office – EuropeAid, which are a complement to the specific pages where commercial opportunities with these organizations are published:

• Tender procedures and contracts issued by EuropeAid
• Tender procedures and contracts issued by the European Investment Bank
• Tender procedures and contracts issued by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
  

OPEN DAYS 2009... here we go!

"The largest event for the regions and cities of Europe". That's how people call it. And it is waiting for us. This is not the first year that we collect information about the OPEN DAYS. In 2008, we offered several pieces of news about OPEN DAYS, but in fact we have been reporting on the Week of Regions and Cities of Europe in our spanish version since 2006.

This year we want to go one step further,and so, some members of the Euroalert.net team are moving to Brussels from 5 to 8 October 2009 to see first hand whether is true or not that is the OPEN DAYS the most important event for European cities and regions.

Moreover, of course, we are going to Brussels to offer you the best coverage of what is about to happen there: workshops, conferences, round tables and cultural activities will take place in Brussels those days to celebrate the European Week of Regions and Cities, OPEN DAYS 2009.

We also know that many of our readers and subscribers will be around, so it's a great oportunity for us to meet you: just send us an e-mail and we will try to make an appointment with you.

We will go on telling you what will our agenda for those days. Meanwhile, we'd like you to send us suggestions on the items that you find more relevant, in order that we pay more attention to them among the many possibilities offered by OPEN DAYS 2009: we want to maximize our participation and to offer you what really interest you.

By the way! The title of the Open Days 2009 is "Global Challenges, European responses" ... In Euroalert.net, as you see, our bigger challenge offering you better information and services day after day.

Euroalert.net scores a goal!!!

We start the summer with an announcement that has little to do with the information from the European Union or the new features of Euroalert information widgets, but, anyway, we are very proud of it. For some months we have wanted to say you that this year Euroalert.net "has been in the courts" of the real world. Yes, yes, scoring goals for real! :-)

The truth is that in Euroalert.net we are completely convinced thatcorporate social responsibility (CSR)is a way to contribute to the community and further improve our competitive performance with a behaviour that goes beyond strict compliance with legal obligations. We believe that this is not a practice suitable only for large multinationals,so we have decided to act on what is closer to us, and we have tried to score a goal in the real world...

This season, handball team from La Salle College in Valladolid has begun to wear a sweatshirt sponsored by Euroalert.net. It is a small grain of sand with which we intend to support the basic sport, which almost always has limited resources, and we have all suffered that lack as we practised it.

We hope these guys get very far, and who knows...? perhaps this is the first step of a career which ends in a national team ..! ;-). In Euroalert.net we believe that there is no small challenge! but above all we wish that you enjoy training, competing and, overall, learning about teamwork.


We wish you all a happy summer. In Euroalert.net we don't close for holidays, and will continue offering you the best tools and informations on the European Union.

Euroalert.net at Seventh Framework Programme with the Future Internet

Last week we took part at the Information Day on Objective 1.2 of Seventh Framework Programme ICT Theme, with the objective to promote de participation of Euroalert.net in any of the consortia which are now being set up to submit proposals under Call 5.

The European Commission is betting high to boost the Future Internet, so European industry might have a key role in its creation thanks to the knowledge on new technologies which are to be developed under these ambitious R&D projects.

As you already know Euroalert.net has recently been a case study thanks to the innovative characteristics of its technology and business model, which combines some of the paradigms appeared under Web 2.0 wave of innovation. We are working on making our technology for digital contents distribution a relevant case in the so-called Internet of Services, so we think we might be an attractive real case for many projects. If any of you think that we might provide a valuable contribution from the point of view of a small company who competes globally in this Future Internet, don't hesitate and send us an email.

If something got clear after seeing the amount of participants and presentations that were made at the Info Day, is the great interest this call for proposals of the Seventh Framework Programme (2007-2013) is stirring up - and this, even a long time before the publication of ICT FP7 - Call 5 in the OJEU, what is due to happen by July 31st.

We also had the opportunity to meet a few old friends of us, some of them really by surprise like Ana Cidad and Tanja Vos from the Research Center on Software Production Methods from the UPV (Spain). As it is always the case in this type of events we met a lot of researchers with whom we shared interests and concerns, and with whom we expect to develop productive collaborations in a close future.

Here are some of the pictures we took at the event and, by the way, just apologize to our friends from GPM Factoría de Internet for having lost the picture of their presence at the Info Day. Good luck with your project for this call for proposals:

Crisis? What crisis?

Many of the contents Euroalert.net provides with to all our users and subscribers have lately been focused on the same burning issue, which is in fact one of the main concerns European citizens have expressed to their institutions: economic crisis. And the truth is that crisis is actually the talk of the town: it is in all newspapers front cover, opening all TV news and, of course, a new very common topic for chitchat...

In Euroalert.net we know crisis is there, that it is really serious and is probably going to be one of the historic events our grand-children will study at school. However, we would not like that a newcomer in conversations and news, makes anybody do without something that has already become an essential tool for our subscriber's work: Euroalert.net information widgets.

We all agree that information has become an essential item, at it is not a luxury thing one might do without in hard times. For that reason, Euroalert.net will not change tariffs for widgets this year, therefore maintaining the same pricing lists as for year 2008.

From Euroalert.net we aim not only to provide contents, but also solutions and tools to get out of the economic turn-down. Public procurement, as well as being one more source of wealth and employment for countries, is also a secure and reliable opportunity for businesses. EU Programmes boost many different areas such as research, training, culture or business support, and there are constantly calls for proposals which may be of great help in such fields. Euroalert.net offers them every day.

All these essential resources will keep on being available for everybody browsing our web to be informed about the European Union, as well as through Euroalert.net free widgets. And for all those wishing to enjoy a service adapted to their own needs, we will continue to provide Euroalert.net personalised widgets in the same conditions as we did last year.

So, quoting Vinton Cerf, one of the “fathers” of the Internet who happened to be with our friends from CTIC at the end of April: there are still people who “take a great deal of pleasure in providing information to others who can use it”... We like that!

The “most aware” Europe's Ear

A complete success, that's what's making Macarena Rodríguez with her blog La Oreja de Europa (Europe's Ear). Just a couple of days ago, we knew about La Oreja de Europa being elected as the Spanish representative in the Internet category for the 2009 European Parliament Prize for Journalism.

The European Parliament Prize for Journalism, which the EP awards for the second time in 2009, is a public reward for all those journalists who cover EU issues and contribute to a better understanding and image of Europe among its citizens. It is in the first phase of the EP Prize of Journalism, where La Oreja de Europa has been shortlisted as the Spanish representative in its category.

Euroalert.net has been in luck having Macarena as a contributor sending us some articles from the very heart of Brussels for the current news from the European Union section, and we are, of course, very happy for her nomination. Congratulations Macarena!, you are The most aware Europe's Ear ;-) All Euroalert.net Team wishes you the best for the finals!!!

Gateway S.C.S. will be one of the first 9 authorised consultants for the ILI Programme

It seems that Euroalert.net Official blog has lately become specialised in making important announcements... If last week we were posting on Euroalert.net as a case study for a book about Web 2.0 business models, what we have for you today are more good news: The company owner of Euroalert.net, Gateway S.C.S. has been qualified by the Spanish National Council of Chambers of Commerce to provide services within the Introductory Programme to International Competitive Bidding, the so-called "ILI Programme".

By the end of last year we talked about the the need to find new and imaginative solutions to tackle the crisis situation we are facing, and international public procurement and competitive bidding seems to be one of the most outstanding business opportunities, both for big or small companies, in the current uncertain scenario. It is within this same context, that the European Commission has decided to promote best practices to facilitate access of SMEs to public procurement contracts. This strategy involves, among other things, to provide companies with access to information about tender opportunities and offering them the tools they require in order to succeed in a highly competitive market.

Following this approach, the ILI Programme comes up as a means to bring Spanish companies, especially SMEs, closer to the business opportunities international competitive bidding market can offer them. Companies taking part in the ILI Programme will get familiar with the procedures and mechanisms for international competitive bidding. For that purpose, they will count on the advice from an authorised specialist appointed by the Spanish National Council of Chambers of Commerce, who will guide their first steps. Therefore, a consultant from Gateway S.C.S. has been one of the first nine authorised consultants to be appointed within the ILI Programme.

This will be one more good opportunity to share the knowledge Euroalert.net has gained in public procurement issues with its service of daily publication of Calls for Tenders from the European Union and some International Multilateral Organizations.

The experience you all, our subscribers, provide us with your suggestions, allowing us to improve our technology to automatically display and distribute these business opportunities using Euroalert.net widgets and web services, have with no doubt contributed to the appointment of Gateway S.C.S. to the ILI Programme.

We are now looking forward to getting started and transform all the knowledge that our participation in this new initiative will bring us, into new services and improvements for Euroalert.net, so all the community can benefit from them.

Euroalert.net as a case study

We want all of you to be part of a small but significant achievement for Euroalert.net, which is also due to its community, in other words, to all of you.

A few months ago, the particular and innovative features held by Euroalert.net, made us being invited to describe them and contribute a chapter for a book about Web 2.0 business models. The book has now been published by US publisher Springer under the title Web 2.0: The Business Model, which has been made up with different contributions from prestigious researchers from universities and companies worldwide.

Euroalert.net is the case study for chapter 6 entitled "Doing business by selling free services", where some of the business models which have emerged in the Internet's Web 2.0 era are characterized. Euroalert.net mixes their characteristics in order to offer you every day free and updated contents about the European Union, namely, Calls for proposals to fund projects, EU Programmes and initiatives, EU News and Public Procurement opportunities. If you can read in Spanish you will also find out a little bit more about the book in the blog Open Economy.

This a shared success from all Euroalert.net community, so... many thanks to all of you for making it possible!!!