At the heart of economic changes for more than two decades, the ICT sector acts as a key determinant of the competitive power in the knowledge economy, attracting investments and creating innovation. By generating new technologies applicable to a wide range of other sectors, the sector of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) plays a strategic role in the promotion of growth, innovation and competitiveness across European economies. Indeed, the impact of ICT industries is crucial for increased productivity and efficiency.

A developed ICT sector is essential for capitalising on digitalisation, keeping up with competitors in globalised markets, establishing Europe’s technological leadership and ensuring that the growth potential of the digital economy will benefit Europe’s economy as a whole.

The objective of this data collection is to provide information for benchmarking and monitoring developments in the ICT sector according to policy makers’ point of view, data needs being policy-driven and contextualised for policy purposes.

The data collected under ICT sector statistics contains five indicators aiming at measuring the sector's importance, and the vitality and attractiveness to capture potential innovation through R&D expenditure and personnel:

ICT sector indicators are compiled according to secondary statistical analysis.