- The German state Schleswig-Holstein wants to remove all traces of Microsoft, including Windows
- The transition began in 2023 and should be completed by the end of 2025
- The Minister of Digitization says: “We have finished with the teams”
Schleswig-Holstein, the most northern state of Germany, has confirmed that it will remove Microsoft Office software tools (including teams, Word, Excel and Outlook) in its public functions in order to reduce its dependence on American technology giants.
The region is now looking for open source alternatives, with LibreOffice, Open-Xchange and Linux being largely adopted.
To date, around 30,000 public employees have already turned their back on Microsoft products, with 30,000 other teachers who should follow suit.
The German state draws the Microsoft software
This decision means that Schleswig -Holstein has become the first German state, and one of the first in Europe, to fully eliminate Microsoft products in public administration, but it marks an increasing trend through the continent while administrations seek to support local and sovereign options, to benefit from digital independence and to fight against the dominance of the Giants of American technology – a subject that has been central to many studies EU’s antitirust EU in recent years.
To allocate almost all the ministries of the State, the transition began in 2023. A complete change for civil servants, the police and the judges is expected by the end of this year.
Perhaps one of the biggest changes that occurred, the transition extends far beyond the switching of Microsoft Office for LibreOffice.
Outlook must be replaced by Open -Xchange teams, Microsoft will be deleted for an open source German platform, and even the entire operating system – Windows – will be extinguished for Linux -based OSS.
In addition to seeking geographical independence, the approach of Schleswig-Holstein can also be considered a reaction to geopolitical instability, such as the return of President Trump and the subsequent tensions of the EU-US.
In Paris on open source software (OSS), the German state could avoid costly license costs linked to Microsoft products (one of the relevant antitrust cases was directed by the European Commission), potentially saving tens of millions of euros in the long term.
Neighboring Danish cities, such as Copenhagen and Aarhus, would also explore Microsoft’s alternatives, but such a change could have a cost.
For example, the state may encounter potential interoperability problems by adopting solutions from a range of providers, while workers may need recycling and full support during the transition.
However, the desires to cut links are obvious. Speak with AFP (via France24), the Minister of Digitization, Dirk Schroedter, concluded: “We have finished with the teams!”
“The geopolitical developments of the last months have reinforced the interest of the path we have taken,” added Schroedter.
