Under the new rules, controls must be established for trading activities which are performed electronically at a very high speed, such as ‘high-frequency trading’ (a type of trading which uses computer programs to perform trades at high speed using rapidly updating financial data).

The technique, called Electronic Very Long Baseline Interferometry (e-VLBI), helps to reveal clues on how galaxies are formed by allowing astronomers to receive and process data in near real-time as an experiment is running, thanks to high speed optical networks.

UNICE: Its regulation is preferable at national level, due to rapid changes in this field.

1. Member States shall monitor and take all necessary and appropriate measures to ensure that ships calling at a port of a Member State are fitted with a voyage data recorder (VDR) system in accordance with the rules laid down in Annex II(II). Any exemptions granted to ro-ro ferries or high-speed passenger craft under Article 4(1)(d) of Council Directive 1999/35/EC of 29 April 1999 on a system of mandatory surveys for the safe operation of regular ro-ro ferry and high-speed passenger craft services(8) shall terminate on 5 August 2002.

The concept which has emerged is named APOLLO and will cover high-speed digital transmission for long data messages, in particular for document (full texts) facsimiles.

The aim is to promote research at European level on technological solutions to the following problems: - development of magnetic-levitation trains, high-speed trains, urban and suburban rail transport systems; - increase in track capacity by better traffic management - improvement of the efficiency of signalling systems - improvement in the safety, punctuality and comfort of rail transport through the use of new data processing and telecommunication technologies The Task Force will therefore endeavour to identify the priority technological and industrial developments; to create the conditions in which the European Union's research effo ...[+++]rt can serve as a catalyst; and to stimulate cooperation between the large European industrial groups.