As the United States pushes ahead with its approach, Europe is reconsidering its reliance on American technology. Policymakers and digital governance practitioners have called for a fundamental shift in strategy. This discourse around digital sovereignty has only increased in urgency given recent geopolitical tensions and events. These events have opened the cracks in Europe’s technological infrastructure. Photo by Thomas M. on Unsplash Digital governance specialist Robin Berjon argues that Europe must break its over-dependence on US technology companies. He notes that Google, Microsoft, and Amazon now control 85 percent of the continent’s cloud-computing market.
Today, these three companies make up about 70% of Europe’s cloud-computing infrastructure. This alarming stat makes very real the threat to data security and the consequences that may result from sanctions or disruption of service. Just last month, a close call with Karim Khan, the ICC’s new chief prosecutor, illustrates these dangers. After the White House imposed sanctions in March 2022, Khan lost access to his Microsoft Outlook email account. This case underlines the fact that geopolitical moves have tangible impacts on European policymakers.
In reaction to these trends, voices like Zach Meyers of the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE) have been calling for a paradigm shift. To achieve this, they advocate for the creation of a small European sovereign cloud. This effort includes a major $200 million investment to safeguard sensitive public information and ease government’s reliance on third-party vendors. Matthias Bauer, director at the European Centre for International Political Economy, points out that only European cloud providers can provide immunity from non-European legislation. These cloud providers, all of which are based in the EU and bound by EU rules, are key to safeguarding sensitive and personal data.
The need is acute. As our Dario Maisto reminds us, this is not a time for organizations to ignore the possibility of a US “kill switch.” Maisto isn’t worried that a future US leader would try to weaponize technology in this way by withdrawing access from Europe. Make no mistake, he argues the results of doing so would be disastrous. Otherwise, Berjon warns, important data may become permanently out of reach. Web pages may become unavailable, and critical state functions, including the IT infrastructure for hospitals, may be left in disarray.
In the past, Europe has gotten a late start in establishing its own tech ecosystem relative to the US and China. Maisto expects to see a faster transition to these solutions in the next five to ten years. That change is being propelled by the collective wake-up call we’re going through at this very moment. This is the new reality that’s already taking hold in many European countries. One German state, Schleswig-Holstein, is making braver moves by phasing out Microsoft products including Office 365 and Windows. Instead, they are turning to open source alternatives like LibreOffice and Linux. In much the same vein, Denmark’s Ministry for Digitalisation is piloting initiatives to decrease their government’s dependence on US tech.
Critics contend that the European Union has been dragging its feet on digital sovereignty. According to Berjon, EU policymakers should be doing more to hold the line on this point. As Bauer describes, tech companies in the EU have a real tough time when it comes to scaling across the entire bloc. Their peers in the US have a much easier time navigating the process. He continues to explain that Europe’s fragmented regulatory environment is perhaps their largest hurdle. You start hearing all of these languages. On top of that, you need to figure out various contract law, labor market regulations, tax law and other sector specific regulations, he continues.
Beyond cloud computing, Europe excels in other technological domains. The continent is the world’s leading power in photolithography, the machines necessary to produce advanced chips. That established advantage has created fertile ground for building a far more robust tech ecosystem. Experts caution that Europe needs to improve its own capacity. Absent serious efforts to change that, it will be left behind and continue to play catch up with others.
In conclusion Microsoft has publicly recognized the concerns raised about the interoperability of its services and its compliance with European regulations. They will continue, a spokesperson announced, to look for more creative solutions. Their aim is to continue delivering to the European Commission and their European customers the breadth of choice and assurances that allows them to conduct business with confidence. This statement does show the realization — at least in principle — of the new reality in Europe among big tech players related to the issue of digital sovereignty.