ITEA and ETRI bring Europe and Korea closer in software systems sector

ITEA, the EUREKA Cluster for Software-intensive Systems & Services (SiSS) and ETRI, the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute celebrate this year a decade-old partnership. “We need to recognise each other as cooperative partners in defining and solving the global agenda,” says Dr. Heung-Nam Kim, President of ETRI. “This will bring us closer both emotionally and mentally, and enable the geographical distance to be overcome. I’m convinced that EUREKA ITEA 3 is a shortcut to sharing R&D collaboration.”

ETRI’s experiences in ITEA allowed the forming project consortia involving partners from both Europe and South Korea. “The biggest benefits of ITEA project participation,” Dr. Kim says, “are to understand more about Europe and to create an R&D network.” While it is also normal in Korea for organisations of companies, universities and research institutes to cooperate in R&D projects with overseas organisations, the multilateral EUREKA ITEA 3 type of project was a rare case in the country’s domestic R&D programme. “Innovation originates from diversity. Korean society should break its homogeneity to become a more innovative society with more diverse partners, to solve global problems. We have a great opportunity to interface European robustness and Korean agility to create mutually reciprocal collaborative relationships. I believe this is the main benefit of ITEA for us.”

All quotes from ITEA magazine 19.