A report, entitled 'Information society research and innovation: delivering results with sustained impact', was written by a panel of six experts chaired by former Finnish Prime Minister Esko Aho. The experts' aim was to analyse how EU research spending could be improved in order to boost Europe's competitiveness.

The document notes that EU funding for information society technologies (IST) research under the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) has helped make Europe a world leader in a number of key areas, including high-speed networking and nano-electronics. It also underline that much of the IST research carried out under FP6 would probably not have happened without EU funding. Furthermore, many of the researchers brought together in these EU-funded projects have remained in close contact, forming long-lasting, pan-European networks. Additional areas where EU investments have reinforced European leadership include mobile communications, advanced robotics, quantum communications and complex systems, the report states.