Seven Dutch cloud providers are actively seeking to collaborate in order to counterbalance the dominant position of American hyperscalers. With a joint approach, they aim not only to handle larger projects but also to respond to the growing political and societal call for greater digital autonomy.
The news was first reported by Dutch newspaper NRC. The parties involved have agreed to better align their infrastructures technically. By adopting uniform standards, it will become easier to move workloads and data between providers. In doing so, they aim to address a major concern organizations often have with smaller suppliers: the fear of dependency or lock-in. At the same time, the companies have agreed that they can assume each other’s obligations toward customers if control over one party falls into foreign hands. This ensures that sensitive data remains within the Netherlands.
The timing of the initiative is no coincidence. The discussion about digital autonomy has gained momentum in recent years, partly due to geopolitical developments and the growing dependence on American technology for cloud and AI. Yet in practice, it proves difficult to actually distance oneself from large foreign platforms. Governments and companies are daunted by the complexity of migrations and fear risks to continuity.
This is precisely what the collaborating parties aim to change. By joining forces, they hope to create economies of scale without completely relinquishing their independence. They will continue to compete with one another on price and service, but seek collaboration in the areas of technology and supply security. This should provide sufficient confidence to win large public tenders as well.
Collaboration within competition frameworks
The role of oversight is crucial in this regard. The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets generally responds positively to such initiatives, as cooperation among smaller players can strengthen competition with dominant market players. At the same time, there is a clear line, the organization states in NRC. Agreements must not lead to price fixing or the exclusion of other providers. The balance between cooperation and competition will therefore need to be closely monitored.
The initiators emphasize that their offering will not be a direct copy of the major international cloud platforms. Instead, they are focusing on flexibility and customization, allowing applications and infrastructure to be tailored to specific Dutch requirements. This aligns with the need of government agencies to gain more control over data, regulations, and service continuity.
Economic aspects also play a role. By outsourcing contracts locally more often, knowledge and capital remain within the Netherlands. This can contribute to innovation and employment in the domestic market. According to the parties involved, this should not be viewed as an additional cost, but as a strategic investment.
From a technical standpoint, the barriers seem relatively limited, as many systems already run on comparable open-source technologies and data centers are geographically close to one another. The complexity lies primarily in legal agreements, for example regarding performance, liability, and security. These preconditions must be carefully defined, writes NRC, to win the trust of customers.
Through this collaboration, the companies are positioning themselves as a pragmatic alternative: not a comprehensive ecosystem like the hyperscalers offer, but a scalable and controllable model that better aligns with European values, legislation, and the need for autonomy.