The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector is one of Barcelona and Catalonia's key industries. Besides being an economically "productive" sector, it also contributes transversal technologies that can be applied to traditional, strategic and emerging sectors in Catalonia. Over 1,700 companies -most (86.12%) working in the service sector- and 155 researchers make Catalonia one of Europe's major centres for innovation in this sector.
The sector's business structure is highly diversified and is predominated by small companies (88.55%), which are considered to be the most innovative and best equipped in Spain. Some of the most notable of these companies include Tech Foundries, Scytl, Thera, Fractus, Kubi Wireless, Aspherio, Genaker, Futurlink, Sit Consulting and South Wing. Large companies include Telefónica, Gedas Iberia, ABB Sistemas Industriales, CSC Computer Science España, Logic Control, Grupo Informática del Corte Inglés, Accenture- Coritel, Azertia, Athlas Technology, Strategy Consultors and Transiciel. Finally, examples of multinational companies that are established in Barcelona and its metropolitan area include T-Systems, Getronics, EDS, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, GFT Iberia Solutions, Capgemini, Microsoft, Cisco Systems or Fujitsu.
ICT sub-sectors can be said to be predominated by telecommunications services, computing (noted for its software) and the manufacture of electronic and telecommunications devices. On a nationwide level, Barcelona specialises in electronic consumer goods, accounting for 63% of total production, it is Europe's largest manufacturer in the sector. As regards computing, 29% of companies in Spain are located in Catalonia, whilst a quarter of the trading licences for telecommunications activities in Spain are issued in Catalonia. Catalonia's turnover for telecommunications is a fifth of Spain's total productivity in this sector.
Comparison of some indicators in households
| % of households in 2004 | UE 15 | Catalonia | Spain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households with mobile phones | 80.0 | 79.7 | 76.9 |
| Households with computers | 53.0 | 54.7 | 48.1 |
| Households with Internet | 45.0 | 40.4 | 30.9 |
| Households with broadband (ADSL +others) | 10.0 | 17.8 | 13.7 |
Barcelona hosts the Telecommunications Market Commission (CMT), the Spanish body responsible for regulating the telecommunications and audiovisual service markets in Spain. The aim of the CMT is "the establishment and supervision of the specific obligations imposed on operators in the telecommunications market, as well as the promotion of competition in the audiovisual market according to its regulatory legislation, to settle disputes that may arise between operators and, if necessary, acting as an arbitrator in those disputes". The Telecommunications Market Commission is a public body attached to the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology
Updated 28/1/2008
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