1. Your logo
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REGION OF CRETE
l-SPEED
Information Society Policies for
European Economic Development -
Activities of the Region of Crete
on ICTs in Tourism
17-18 May
Heraklion Crete
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made possible by the
INTERREG IVC programme
The contents reflect the author's views. The Managing Authority is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained therein

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REGION OF CRETE
Partnership
•
City of Venice (Italy)
• Hedmark County (Norway)
• City of Warsaw (Poland)
• National Ass. of Municipalities of Bulgaria
• Region of Crete (Greece)
• Powys County Council (UK)
• Regional Government of Galicia (Spain)
• City of Bucharest (Romania)
• Urban Community of Nantes (France)
• Province of Rome (Italy)
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
2

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REGION OF CRETE
Scenario
• Tourism economy plays a fundamental role for the E.U. economy:
It indirectly generates 10% of EU GDP and provides12% of jobs
• Arrivals are growing at a lower rate than the world average and by
2020, Europe's share of the total market is expected to fall from 54%
to 46%
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
3

4. Your logo
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REGION OF CRETE
Why Information Society and
Tourism?
Innovation and new information technologies have become determining
factors for the competitiveness of the tourism industry and for strengthening
exchanges with other sectors linked to it. There is also a need to accelerate
the integration of information society tools and services into all tourism
activities, particularly those carried out by SMEs.
Europe, the world's No 1 tourist destination - a new political
framework for tourism in Europe
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 2010
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
4

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REGION OF CRETE
Project Objectives
• To increase the awareness of policy makers regarding ICT potentials for
growth, competitiveness, and sustainability
• To support Innovation through sharing solutions at EU level
• To facilitate the development and the adoption of ICT-based public services
• To foster the cooperation between public and private sector in the frame of
the Tourism Economy
• To foster economic attractiveness of EU regions
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
5

6. Your logo
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REGION OF CRETE
Expected results
• Increased policy makers' awareness on Information Society Policies related to
Sustainable Tourism Economy
• Improved regional/local policies for the developing of ICT-based public services to
increase the productivity and competitiveness
• Increased capacity of local/regional administrations across Europe to roll out ICT
services and overcome obstacles
• Increased and widespread know-how of partners regarding ICT-based solutions for
Tourism Economy
• Improved cooperation and dialogue between public sector and private actors in the
frame of the Tourism Economy
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
6

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REGION OF CRETE
SWOT ANALYSIS
• Difference between regions concerning size and tradition of being a tourist
destination
• Difference between skills in ICTs literacy among the workinf force and the
access to Internet
• ICT infrastructure
But also similarities…..
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
7

8. Your logo
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REGION OF CRETE
SWOT ANALYSIS
• ICT and creative business remain too separate from the tourism industry,
tourism still not a part of the knowledge economy.
• Lack of collaboration between local and regional public bodies and
authorities.
• Fragmentation and lack of coordination of initiative between regional
partners and sector development, results in a lot of short term pilot
initiatives, lack of consistent strategies
• Gap between research and business community, results in failure of
technology transfer in business and low level of innovation.
• Many SME’s in Tourism and in combination with low education level among
the owners and the staff results low level of innovation
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
8

9. Your logo
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REGION OF CRETE
IDENTIFICATION OF GOOD
PRACTICES
• To foster growth and innovation in Tourism
• To develop an integrated approach to Tourism
• To enhance cooperation between public and private sector
• To face Tourism congestion and manage the distribution of tourist flows
• To overcome seasonal nature of demand
• To reinforce the quality of the supply, promoting its diversification
• To improve statistics and analysis relating to Tourism
30 Good practices identified so far among partner regions and EU level !!!
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
9

10. Your logo
here
REGION OF CRETE
IDENTIFICATION OF GOOD
PRACTICES
• To foster growth and innovation in Tourism
• To develop an integrated approach to Tourism
• To enhance cooperation between public and private sector
• To face Tourism congestion and manage the distribution of tourist flows
• To overcome seasonal nature of demand
• To reinforce the quality of the supply, promoting its diversification
• To improve statistics and analysis relating to Tourism
30 Good practices identified so far among partner regions and EU level !!!
This project is co-financed by the ERDF and made
possible by the INTERREG IVC programme
9