The Microsoft Dilemma

Synopsis

Microsoft is generally considered the dinosaur of the digital age. However, the US Corporation is more powerful today than ever before. The power of its monopoly is nowhere more apparent than in Europe: from Finland to Portugal, from Ireland to Greece, the information technology of every state administration and its institutions (military, police, fiscal authorities etc.) is based on Microsoft programmes. Since digital systems are constantly expanding and increasing in importance, countries are becoming more and more dependent on this single company. This dependence causes continually rising costs and prevents technical progress in state authorities. It systematically undermines European procurement and competition laws, it leads inevitably to the company having an overwhelming political influence, while it exposes state IT systems along with citizens’ data to a high technical and political security risk. Is Europe’s digital sovereignty at stake?