2. Market development
The use of ICT in education and training represents a quite relevant indicator of market development and it shows a direct correspondence with that of technological penetration.
Education
The education sector has not been viewed util now as a very profitable one and has been generally considered as being too difficult to enter. The lack of adequate financial support is one of the most serious obstacles in entering this sector. Yet, especially in France, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom new avenues seem to be opening as a number of recent national policies have set emphasis on the introduction of programmes for educational multimedia. Thus, the education sector is undergoing significant changes, and perceptions on its potential expansion are becoming increasingly positive.
Table 10: The role of computers in education
Training
Training represents a growing market sector in Europe. Its development is linked to the emergence and consolidation of a new conception of the work organisation which, in turn, is related to the fast changing nature of the market dynamics and its needs. Competencies evolve rapidly especially as a result of the widespread diffusion and development of new technologies. In the information society, up-dating and re-training is becoming a vital and integral part of employers’ skills. Not only are employers expected to cope with an increasingly changing environment, but jobs as such are also becoming more and more flexible. The fact that there is no longer a «job for life» has increased the need for re-training and has also contributed to boosting this sector.
On the overall, training and re-training programmes for employers and employees have become increasingly important in the European corporate sector. Companies are placing great emphasis on multimedia training since they present two significant advantages: they allow to save resources on traditional training and they allow a quick adaptation of skills to the market changing needs. At present, corporate training is most needed in technical IT skills and this means that there is great potential for multimedia training and education. The latter is viewed as having the ability to deliver high-quality, highly focused and detailed training and education materials across a wide geographical area (Datamonitor, 19, 1997). The leading industries are banking, retail and petro-chemical, where large organisations have a major weight but several developments are taking place in smaller enterprises, through the implication of intermediaries (Association, Chambers of Commerce, etc.) in the training provision and funding system.
Training and re-training programmes are experiencing a growing demand all over Europe, especially in Northern European countries. In the United Kingdom, for example, training providers are increasingly involved in government-launched programmes precisely because life long learning has become a major national priority.
Home
The home sector has boosted the market development of educational CD-ROMs and on-line services in many European countries, especially in those with a high degree of technological penetration. Countries with a more developed Internet infrastructure and lower access costs have shown a greater demand for Web-based services, although compared to off-line products these have experienced a much lower demand.
It should be noted that the consumer market is the largest user segment of multimedia since the majority of PCs are sold to home users.
Within the range of products supplied by the market, games and entertainment are among the most requested items whereas education and edutainment CD-ROMs have not yet reached the same size of demand. There are, however, significant variations among European countries. There is, in fact, a higher demand for such products in France, Germany and Scandinavia than in southern European countries. Yet in the long run the demand for multimedia products should become more homogeneous across Europe as the less developed regions increase their level of technological penetration. It is a fact that the demand for hardware and software is rapidly increasing in southern European countries and that a growth in home PC penetration will foster the growth of the home market for multimedia in training and education.
In general terms, we can identify three factors that have contributed to the increasing demand for educational multimedia products: a) higher quality of products; b) declining costs of multimedia hardware and software; c) government initiatives promoting the use of multimedia and technology within schools. This has indirectly affected the demand of the home sector as parents tend to buy the same computers for home use as those used by their children at school. Moreover, children themselves become more interested in multimedia products wanting to explore at home the many opportunities offered by this sector.
In short and according to the data collected, there is substantial optimism concerning the growth of multimedia products and services for education in Europe. As a matter of fact, the total expenditure in this sector is expected to grow due to declining prices and/or higher quality products. Nevertheless, the CD-ROM market will continue to hold the largest share of the home education sector.
In fact, although the number of Internet users is expected to grow at a faster rate than the CD-ROM users, off-line products will continue to hold a greater share of the home education market. This is due to lower prices, greater accessibility and availability. The demand for on-line services may be affected by high costs also due to telecom pricing and supply conditions. With the full liberalisation of telecommunications in some southern European countries and with a fall in prices, the demand for such services will certainly experience a relative increase.