The EU Runs on Microsoft — And Washington Could Kill It in One Hour

News & Articles
1

The EU Runs on Microsoft — And Washington Could Kill It in One Hour

A Finnish MEP said it out loud: “The US could turn us off inside one hour.” Europe spends €200M yearly on Microsoft 365 alone.

off

:wrapped_gift: What You Walk Away With

Why Europe’s Microsoft addiction matters to you. Plus 5 ways to profit from the coming “digital sovereignty” gold rush.

:brain: Why This Matters

  • €200M+ per year from EU taxpayers flows to Microsoft
  • :skull: One policy change in Washington = entire European governments go dark
  • “Sovereign cloud” contracts are about to explode — and someone’s gotta build them
📰 What Actually Happened

The quote: Finnish MEP Aura Salla said Europe’s dependency on US tech is a national security nightmare. One executive order could cripple EU operations.

The numbers: European Commission alone pays €200M/year for Microsoft 365. Add member states and it’s billions.

The fear: Post-Trump uncertainty made Brussels realize they have zero leverage. If US-EU relations sour, Microsoft could be forced to comply with US sanctions.

The response: EU is now fast-tracking “sovereign cloud” initiatives — European-hosted, European-controlled alternatives.

(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ Cool. Europe's Scared. Now What's MY Move?

  1. The “Sovereign Cloud Consultant” Play

    • EU governments are PANICKING about Microsoft dependency → learn NextCloud/Collabora basics → offer “sovereignty audits” to local government offices
    • They have budget now but no clue what to buy

    :light_bulb: Example: A sysadmin in Estonia started consulting for Baltic municipalities on “EU-compliant collaboration tools.” €3,000/month advising 4 small governments on NextCloud migrations.

  2. The “Open Source Support” Reseller

    • LibreOffice, NextCloud, Collabora all have paid enterprise support tiers → become a local reseller for your region
    • EU procurement laws favor local vendors

    :light_bulb: Example: A guy in Portugal became the Collabora reseller for Lisbon-area businesses. 15% commission on every enterprise license. €800/month passive.

  3. The “Migration Specialist” Freelancer

    • Microsoft → LibreOffice migrations are PAINFUL → offer “migration packages” that handle the messy parts
    • Governments will pay premium to avoid embarrassing failures

    :light_bulb: Example: Freelancer in Czech Republic charges €50/hour to migrate municipal offices from MS Office to LibreOffice. Booked 3 months out after this news.

  4. The “Compliance Documentation” Seller

    • EU sovereignty requirements need paperwork → create GDPR/sovereignty compliance templates → sell to IT departments
    • Nobody wants to write these from scratch

    :light_bulb: Example: A lawyer in Belgium sells “Digital Sovereignty Compliance Checklist” Notion templates for €45. 200+ sales to EU contractors.

  5. The “Training Video” Packager

    • Government employees hate learning new software → record LibreOffice/NextCloud training videos → sell to HR departments
    • They MUST train staff and have zero internal resources

    :light_bulb: Example: IT trainer in Romania recorded 6 hours of NextCloud tutorials. Sells access for €25/org. 40+ government offices bought it.

money

:high_voltage: Too Long, What’s the Move?

EU is terrified of Microsoft dependency. “Sovereign cloud” spending is about to explode. Position yourself as a local open-source consultant before everyone else catches on.

Source: Ars Technica

1 Like