Recent innovations in the field of information technology and telecommunications may reduce the distances and minimize the costs of location in remote areas, thereby contributing to a better social, economic and territorial integration of the different areas of the European territory. In this context, the European Commission created the ORA Programme, in 1990, specifically designed to promote research and technological development in the field of telematics systems for rural areas.

The study was developed within this community programme with the following objectives: (i) map the occurrence of different types of rural areas in the European Union, (ii) compare the occurrence of specific types of rural areas in five Mediterranean countries (Spain, Greece, France, Italy and Portugal) and two other European countries (Ireland and Southwest Germany) with the occurrence of areas with different use levels of telematics systems, (iii) establish parameters for each type of rural area and estimate the potential market for telematics services, (iv) develop socio-economic and socio-geographic reference models for the types of rural areas identified, (v) support the ORA Programme in terms of models and data.