Municipalities' dependence on American Big Tech is risky
image: BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash
Many Dutch municipalities depend on Microsoft for simple things like email. In ‘Business Wise’, experts, including Reijer Passchier, Professor of Digitalisation and the Democratic Constitutional State at the OU and Assistant Professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law in Leiden, warn of the risks.
What if Trump orders Big Tech companies to cut off access to their services? A risk that recently became a reality when the mailbox of the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, was shut down. Although the billion-dollar company denies involvement, the court's arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant most certainly played a role.
Passchier does not expect the Big Tech giants to make sacrifices for the Netherlands or Europe if the US government summons them to completely block their services in Europe: 'I wouldn’t count on that.'
Politicians are now realising the potential impact, resulting in a recently passed motion by the House of Representatives in the Netherlands to make government systems less dependent on American Big Tech.
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Read the full article in Business Wise (in Dutch)