Two of Denmark’s largest municipalities, Copenhagen and Aarhus, have announced their decision to discontinue the use of Microsoft systems, marking the latest move by European governments to reduce their dependence on American Big Tech companies.
The decision, reported by Danish newspaper Politiken, comes as both municipalities seek to address concerns over the economic implications of relying on Microsoft Office programs and the “monopoly-like” control exerted by the company. Henrik Appel Espersen, chairman of Copenhagen’s audit committee, cited the current foreign policy situation, particularly under US President Donald Trump, as a factor that has made this issue more pressing.
Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest municipality, has already begun transitioning to a German system, replacing Microsoft technology. Euronews Next verified this information through independent contact with both municipalities, confirming local reporting on the matter.
This development follows a similar debate in the Netherlands, where the Dutch parliament approved motions earlier this year aimed at building a digital cloud to reduce the country’s reliance on US cloud technology. Experts have expressed concerns that the Trump administration could compel tech companies to provide US authorities with Dutch data or force them to cease providing cloud services to Europe, potentially causing significant disruptions to public services.
The debate over US Big Tech influence has been ongoing in Denmark, as evidenced by the findings of an expert panel investigating their impact. In December 2024, the Danish expert group on tech giants released a report calling for the development of Big Tech alternatives in Europe to “enable them to emerge and grow.” The report emphasized that “no one should be forced to use the services of tech giants to access information and participate in social, cultural, and democratic communities.”
Morten Bodskov, Denmark’s Minister of Business and Industry, stressed that relying solely on Big Tech solutions makes society “extremely vulnerable” to geopolitical tensions and technological pressures. He advocated for the development of homegrown solutions, stating, “We need to fence in the tech giants.”
The Danish expert group’s report also recommended creating an overview of tech giants’ influence on Denmark’s digital infrastructure and ensuring that the public sector and education systems are not dependent on their services.
In addition to local initiatives, Denmark and other concerned states may find an alternative in EU-wide initiatives currently in development. The European Commission is conducting public consultations until July 3 on future cloud legislation in the bloc, aiming to address Europe’s gap in cloud and AI infrastructure capacity. The proposed act is expected to focus on research and innovation to accelerate data centers for cloud and AI, private investment in sustainable cloud and AI capacity, and increasing the “secure processing capacity” of EU-based cloud providers.
Mario Draghi’s 2024 report on Europe’s competitiveness highlighted the need for the bloc to “enhance technological infrastructure and reduce dependencies” on non-EU cloud service providers, further emphasizing the importance of these developments.
