More than seventy organizations, including us, signed a manifesto calling for a new and fair digital economy. The manifesto, and the accompanying white paper, come at a critical time, ahead of the hearings of the nominees to become European Commissioners.
The manifesto is structured around two demands. First, the signatories call for breaking up the structural power of Big Tech companies. Second, they urge the proactive promotion of a more open and diverse ecosystem of digital services that serve public goals and not just private profit, which aligns very well with our idea of Public Digital Infrastructure.
Regarding the second demand, the signatories call on states to:
- Commit significant investment towards public digital infrastructure based on free and open source software and the digital commons.
- Use public procurement as a market lever to encourage the adoption and scaling of open and interoperable alternatives to the Big Tech incumbents.
- Put in place and enforce strong human rights safeguards and accountable governance frameworks, including over public digital infrastructure.
The organizations that signed the manifesto recognize that additional funding is essential to support the foundation of an open Internet. As we have argued before, such an investment would enable the emergence and maintenance of a Digital Public Space as an alternative to the existing commercial platforms dominating today’s online environment.