Telefonica : European Commission praises Think Big School as a powerful template for European Governments to develop digital skills

Brussels, 31st March 2014 - Telefónica has launched, with the European Commission, the Think Big School Initiative at The International School of Brussels (ISB), showcasing the Think Big model at a European level, with partners Mozilla Foundation and Technology Will Save Us. This session brought to life Think Big's belief in equipping a new generation with the skills and confidence to be more in our digital world.

Only two weeks after Eduardo Navarro, Telefónica's newly appointed Chief Commercial Digital Officer, spoke at the European Innovation Convention on the importance of digital literacy, Think Big teams delivered an event in Brussels demonstrating the need to quicken the pace of Europe's digital transformation through turning consumers of technology into tomorrow's makers in the presence of EU Innovation Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn.

This session was a shared leading opportunity carried out in close collaboration with the ISB, in an international setting, aimed at providing more insights into the opportunities to improve, integrate and accelerate innovation, in support of the European Commission's repeated calls to action enabling "generation Z" to become the "Innovation generation" in Europe.

This event focused on digital making, belongs to the broader pan-European campaign in support of digital skills on which Telefonica will embark on with Mozilla throughout 2014. It also informs the development of Think Big curriculum, further establishing it as a truly digital-focused pan-European educational programme, working with over 150 partners to get young people utilising their digital skill-sets in gaining meaningful employment opportunities.

Long time supporter*, European Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn awarded the best ideas at the event and praised the programme as an innovative template to develop digital skills in Europe and urged Member States to "work closely with companies like Telefonica to help develop a digital curriculum and transform the school experience".

Telefónica COO, José María Álvarez Pallete commented: "It is our belief that securing a more prosperous Europe can only be achieved if opportunity is open to all and the necessary skills are given to utilise the possibilities of digital. Think Big, Wayra and Talentum are the three pillars on which our digital transformation is based. All have the objective of promoting entrepreneurialism but it's the self-reliance and empowerment given to their own ideas, especially those based around digital innovation, that will ultimately reshape the European landscape. This aspiration can and should be taught at school."

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About Telefónica

Telefónica is one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world in terms of market capitalisation and number of customers. From its consolidated position in the sector, and with telephony fixed and mobile broadband as key areas that support future growth, the company focuses its strategy on securing its leadership in the digital world.

Present in 24 countries and with a customer base of more than 323 million customers, Telefonica has a strong presence in Europe and Latin America, important industrial alliances and a leading global scale which positions the company to capture growth opportunities. Telefonica is a fully publicly traded company with more than 1.5 million direct stakeholders and its ordinary shares are traded in various stock markets, including London and New York among others.

About Think Big

Think Big is O2's social action programme with a specific emphasis on supporting young people across our O2 markets. Think Big has been developed in partnership with the Telefónica Foundation accessing its world-class expertise on social and cultural action. The Telefónica Foundation was created in 1998 in Spain with the aim of establishing a long-term structure for the social and cultural activities of all companies of the Telefónica group, which includes the O2 companies. Many O2 people have already participated in the Telefónica Foundation's Proniño programme that supports more than 163,000 children in education across Latin America.