AMETIC makes a positive assessment of the first semester with the new government team

José Manuel de Riva, president of the association, highlights economic consolidation and internal consensus as notable notes of the period.

AMETIC, Multisector Association of Electronics, Information and Communication Technologies, Telecommunications and Digital Content Companies, has held its General Assembly, the first after the current government team took over the reins of the organization last December

José Manuel de Riva, who was making his debut as president of the Assembly, highlighted in the period, above other positive notes, the economic consolidation, as well as the consensus reached within the association between the companies of the hypersector, in reference to the possible alterations of the current "Digital Dividend", which he defined as "a new model of understanding, based on the height of vision and the search for a balance, which represents an effort by all parties, so that some benefit is not harmed. of others.”

Three and a half million euros as a budget

According to data revealed by the general secretary, Esteban Egea, and by the treasurer, José Luis Adanero, respectively, “AMETIC has managed to stop the loss of members that ended last year, reversing that trend in such a way that the balance of incorporations and abandonments in the first six months of the year is positive.” Likewise, “the spending containment and budget austerity measures are bearing fruit with a favorable account balance in the semester.” The AMETIC Assembly approved a budget for the year of almost three and a half million euros with a perfect balance between income and expense chapters.

In his speech before a broad representation of the 307 companies and groups of companies that coexist within the AMETIC, José Manuel de Riva took stock of just over half a year at the head of AMETIC, with the new governing bodies (Permanent Commission and Board of Directors), and alluded to the moment in which they took charge of the entity in which "a series of circumstances occurred that gave rise to a complex panorama", with "lack of roots among the associates, including a clear questioning of the value of belonging to the Association.” According to the president, “there were organizational problems and lack of leadership, lack of motivation of the staff, as well as the absence of an integrative message that would elevate AMETIC's approaches to the Public Administrations and society in general and that we were perceived as the reference and obligatory interlocutor for everything that affects the hypersector.”

De Riva assured that the shock plan implemented has managed to greatly alleviate the adverse circumstances and has contributed to improving the governance of the Association, defining a new organizational model and appointing a general director in the person of Benigno Lacort. “A renewed strategy, with ambitious objectives, on an optimized structure with the idea of ​​adapting to the new needs of our companies.”

El presidente aseguró que también se está avanzado en impulsar la presencia de AMETIC en los medios, implementando un plan estratégico de comunicación; así como en “dar la mayor relevancia y notoriedad a los eventos en que participamos o directamente organizamos”, y mencionó como gran referencia el Encuentro de las Telecomunicaciones que organiza AMETIC, dentro de los cursos de verano de la Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo, que tendrá lugar del 2 al 5 de septiembre, en el Palacio de la Magdalena, en Santander; así como el Encuentro de las TIC, organizado en colaboración con APD, celebrado el pasado junio, y otros de importancia en los que participa AMETIC como Turismo, TIC e Innovación y Greencities&Sostenibilidad&Foro Tikal, que tendrá su escenario en Málaga en el próximo mes de octubre.

De Riva assured that AMETIC has assumed principles such as maximum management transparency, “a government of companies for companies,” and budgetary austerity, aimed at achieving a balance between expenses and income. It is also intended to promote the code of good governance, the redefinition of the advisory council, as well as "provide ourselves with a conflict resolution mechanism."

"These objectives have been carried out in the past six months, in which intense activity has been developed both internally and externally since we are in a transcendental moment of legislative changes and government initiatives - he assured - that will affect our future in an important way such as the General Telecommunications Law, the Intellectual Property Law, the development of the Spanish Digital Agenda, the Market Unity Law and, among others, the Entrepreneurship Law, around which AMETIC is playing an important role.”

José Manuel de Riva pointed out as two very important successes in the period the preparation of the draft of the Intellectual Property Law in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture; as well as the, already mentioned, maintenance of consensus on the distribution of radio space in the face of the “Digital Dividend”. And he valued very positively the good relations with the Administration bodies.

As pending issues, he said that the presence of AMETIC in European initiatives had to be increased, "since many of the issues that affect us and will affect us more in our future, are decided in that area."

The new organizational structure in terms of sectoral areas is organized from now on with Xavier Castillo, in charge of mass consumption, Industry and Electronics; Antonio Cimorra, information technologies, Amalia Pelegrín, operators; and Juan Gascón, digital services and content.