Malte EngelerToday is the first "Digital Independence Day" #DID, proclaimed at the #39C3 by several digital policy NGOs and EU corporations. It advocates switching from Chrome to Firefox, from GMail to ProtonMail, from Google Search to Ecosia etc This is framed in the familiar story of taking away power from US tech monopolies and strengthening (European) alternatives.
The name "Independence Day" (intentionally or not) evokes picture of the US declaration of independence towards the British Empire, turning the American colonies into sovereign states. This mirrors how European policymakers talk about "digital sovereignty" and how the broader tech community is focussing on "Big Tech“, or the „Broligarchy“ etc.
Much has been said about "digital sovereignty" and how it risks reproducing notions of nationalism, patriotism and European exceptionalism while obfuscating more systemic issues of market based economies, e.g. in this post by @alineblankertz:
https://www.structural-integrity.eu/on-tech-sovereignty-how-to-nail-jelly-to-a-tree/
On tech sovereignty - how to nail jelly to a tree
After briefly commenting on the EuroStack, politics have continued to escalate, warranting another, slightly longer post on the broader European perspective. What is the policy context, what kind of sovereignty is implied in the current policy developments, and what is to make of this? Europe’s a
Just as with "digital sovereignty" I have substantial reservations regarding the value of a campaign like "Digital Independence Day". While I undoubtedly encourage everyone to use services that are less toxic than others this focus on individual usage and European alternatives comes with all the baggage discussed at length elsewhere.
It focusses on monopolies while ignoring that all capitalist competition demands corporations to favor profit over user interests, no matter whether it is a US or EU tech company. It focuses on supposedly "ethical alternatives" while ignoring that no corporation is your friend. European tech companies might appear less problematic right now but they still are privately owned corporations. Switching to their services is like choosing a more polite or familiar tyrant.
The question (for me) is: Do the benefits of campaigns like #DID outweigh its downsides? The answer for me - sadly - is: No, they do not. Campaigns like these take away attention from truly transformative approaches like socializing digital platforms. I hear people saying that you can do one thing and still also do the other. I don't think it works like this. At least not when the latter message is not front and center in campaigns that focus on the first.
#DID could use the collective marketing and star power and advocate for more than a more friendly European capitalism. And maybe some people will connect the dots themselves anyways. I doubt that the current messaging is enough for that though. To the contrary: I suspect the campaign will reinforce nationalistic ideas while also creating confusion about the history of colonialism and the workings of capitalism. As I see it, #DID would more accurately be named "digital overlords swapping day"
Pontiff Fractal Tiam@malteengeler could you elaborated the core message?
#DID could use the collective marketing and star power and advocate for more than a more friendly European capitalism.
@pft I am happy to. What are you interested in?
@malteengeler I can follow your arguments but I'm not sure if you're proposing an alternative.
The article by Aline clarified various understandings of "digital sovereignty" for me and was very insightful, but again I ask myself "what is the next step?". Is there some kind of roadmap, with values and goals, that I, as an "IT person", can implement/follow/contribute to get one step closer to "digital sovereignty"?
@pft First: thank you for taking the time to read Aline's article. Second: I don't know you and your expertise. And I don't have "the roadmap" for you. I myself am part of several groups that work on projekts of different stages. One of these is #Redscout24, an initiative that proposes to socialise Immoscout24 (see the #39c3 talk: https://media.ccc.de/v/39c3-redscout42-zur-digitalen-wohnungsfrage#t=2024). On a more fundamental note I would encourage to question whether "digital sovereignty" is a useful goalpost in general.
RedScout42 – Zur digitalen Wohnungsfrage
@malteengeler that video was on my watch list and now I had to finally watch it :)
The proposed solution in this specific case is collective ownership, or socialization of the digital infrastructure to counter concentration of power that leads to speculation with scarce resources.
This could be a definition of digital sovereignty, and an abstract roadmap. So let's communicate it.
I don't know you and your expertise.
Gut so! I see someone like you (legal scholar, active in politics, part of social collectives) and I wish for comprehensive yet concise assessment of the status quo and a proposal for an alternative. That is exactly what #DID are trying to do (regardless of their success).