The NetworldEurope SME Working Group actively promotes the skills of small and medium-sized enterprises in telecommunications, facilitating their collaboration with larger companies and research organizations through networking, webinars, and a dedicated “Find your SME” portal. This group has successfully influenced the European Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking to adopt a key performance indicator requiring a minimum 20% SME participation in projects, a target that has been exceeded with 63 SMEs joining the 6G Infrastructure Association. In the 5G Public-Private Partnership, SME participation has consistently surpassed the 20% funding goal, reaching 21.95% of EU funding and involving 167 SMEs in Phase 3 projects to drive innovation in vertical sectors.
Source: https://www.networldeurope.eu/sme-wg/
Keywords: SME participation, vertical sectors, innovation ecosystem, industrial leadership, 5G PPP