Recently, European cloud service providers established an independent “watchdog” to prevent software vendors from engaging in unfair or even illegal practices. The European Cloud Competition Observatory, or ECCO, will monitor the European cloud market to prevent distortions of competition. Last week, Cispe, the trade association representing European cloud infrastructure providers, announced the establishment of the ECCO. In this article, we’ll tell you more about it!
Why was the ECCO established?
The establishment of ECCO was part of the settlement between Cispe and Microsoft in July. This settlement resolved an antitrust complaint filed with the European Commission against Microsoft. The company was accused of engaging in unfair competition. This vendor increasingly sells products such as Microsoft 365 and Windows alongside its own Azure Cloud and other services. As a result, other cloud providers with their own SaaS services are being sidelined. End customers who purchase the software ultimately suffer from this as well. In addition to co-founding the ECCO, the company paid compensation to Cispe and promised to develop an improved version of its Azure Stack HCI product for European cloud providers that is comparable to their own cloud solutions.
This is how ECCO monitors European software suppliers!
The ECCO will monitor European software vendors for unfair practices, but initially its focus will be on ensuring that Microsoft adheres to the agreements. Members of the watchdog are currently testing Microsoft’s modifications. A meeting with the company’s technical leadership will take place in Redmond, Washington, in December, after which a progress report is expected. Further evaluations of progress regarding the agreements with the company will follow in February and March. The ECCO will also apply this approach to other software suppliers in Europe, thereby keeping the cloud market fair and open to competition!
Independent audit by ECCO
ECCO is therefore a completely independent organization, managed by the CISPE secretariat and operating under an independent governance model. A group of French companies and organizations under the name Cigref and a Belgian association of CIOs and digital technology leaders under the name Beltug will act as observers on behalf of consumers. This ensures that ECCO’s assessments and statements are 100% independent and based on the truth.