Europe on the way to digital commons?

The French government has a new plan for Europe that could help the EU compete with the US tech giants: the digital commons.

Digital commons are everywhere – from open source software to other technological tools that are open and accessible to all members of the community. They are often managed voluntarily by technology enthusiasts and Internet communities with limited resources.

When properly implemented, digital commons can bring greater competitiveness, knowledge sharing and interoperability to the technology sector.

The French government, during its Presidency of the EU Council in 2022, has called on Member States to focus attention on digital commons. From Paris came a call for European governments to develop policy agendas to pursue the objective.

This week, Europe is joining the movement: on 21 and 22 June, 19 EU Member States and the European Commission presented a report on digital commons (French: communs numériques) at the Digital Assembly in Toulouse.