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Brussels (pte015/13.03.2003/11:12) - The European Information Society Technologies Prize (IST Prize) will be awarded for the most innovative information technology projects this year in the competition's ninth round.
The competition is organized by the European Council of Applied Sciences and Engineering (Euro-CASE) http://www.euro-case.org under the auspices of the EU Commission.
Up to 700,000 euros in prize money will be awarded for ready-to-market concepts and research results with a high degree of innovation.
German teams interested in competing can attend an information session organized by FAST GmbH http://www.fast.de in Munich on 10 April. Austrians are also being encouraged to send in their entries. "The participation of Austrian companies could be much improved," said Herbert Mang of the Austrian Academy of Sciences http://www.oeaw.ac.at , speaking to pressetext.europe. Scandinavia usually sends the most entries.
The main goal of the competition is to promote innovation in information technology. Any new product idea with a high information technology content may be submitted. A prototype of the product must however already exist. Finished products should not have gone on the market before 1 June 2002.
International experts rate the product along criteria such as technical design, degree of innovation and competitive potential. The product's potential to create new jobs by staking out new markets or leading to the founding of new companies is also considered. A bonus point is given for products contributing to the acceptance of information technology in society.
The competition is open to companies, universities and professional colleges, as well as other organizations in Europe and Israel. The prizes include 20 so-called Winner Prizes of 5,000 euros each. Three entries can win a prestigious Grand Prize, each worth 200,000 euros. The awards will be presented at the IST event in Milan from 2 to 4 October.
More information on the European IST Prize can be found at http://www.it-prize.org . The final deadline for entries is 15 May 2003.
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