Beyond its focus on building the ‘Eurostack’, the ITRE Committee strikes a middle ground in aligning with some but not all recommendations for the Digital Networks Act
The ITRE Committee adopted a heavily amended version of its report on tech sovereignty and the digital ecosystem
On 3 June 2025, the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) of the European Parliament voted to adopt an own-initiative report on European technological sovereignty and digital infrastructure. The report, originally drafted by MEP Sarah Knafo – a member of the far-right ESN parliamentary group – was rewritten almost entirely through a compromise amendment agreed by a coalition of MEPs from the larger EPP, Renew, S&D and Green parties. In addition to defining tech sovereignty and detailing a vision of European digital public infrastructure (DPI), also commonly being referred to as the Eurostack, the report provides a substantive response to the EC’s Digital Infrastructure White Paper as the process of drafting a Digital Networks Act (DNA) remains in its early stages. The report and its non-binding recommendations will come before the full European Parliament for a vote in July 2025.
Reducing dependency on foreign digital services is critical to the EU’s resilience and global competitiveness
Starting with the assertion that the EU relies on other countries for more than 80% of its digital products, services, infrastructure and intellectual property, the report calls for the development of greater tech sovereignty that spans the value chain from R&D through to a more competitive marketplace. The ITRE Committee specifically warns that addressing the dominance of the US and China in digital markets and achieving the bloc’s 2030 Digital Decade targets are reliant on creating market conditions in which European firms can compete successfully. To begin the work of developing the EU’s tech capabilities, the report first recommends a comprehensive risk assessment framework to identify critical dependencies on foreign firms and single providers for digital services. According to the Committee, those dependencies are particularly strong in markets such as cloud infrastructure, semiconductors, AI, and cybersecurity, with each weighing heavily on the bloc’s resilience and competitiveness.
The Committee envisions digital public infrastructure at both the hardware and software levels of the network stack
The report recommends the development of a robust European DPI as the “backbone” of the economy. The ITRE Committee envisions public investment supporting new infrastructures across the hardware and software layers of the network stack, including semiconductors, connectivity solutions, cloud infrastructure, data and AI. In line with the positioning of various EC written and commissioned statements on improving competitiveness, including the Letta and Draghi reports, the Committee warns that its vision of European DPI cannot be achieved with regulation alone and will require significant public investment and changes in industrial policy. The report identifies fiscal tools, such as the Multiannual Financial Framework, as well as new legislation, including the Cloud and AI Development Act, as possible avenues through which public investment could be channelled and plans for specific DPI, such as a sovereign cloud infrastructure, could be outlined. However, if based on EU values and opened to like-minded partners as prescribed by the Committee, a European DPI is believed to be capable of facilitating innovation through new market entrants and creating a more fair and competitive economic model for digital services that embraces openness and common standards.
The European Parliament appears more willing to consider some, but not all, proposals floated by the EC on the DNA
The ITRE Committee also responded to a number of key recommendations for the development of the DNA currently under consideration by the EC. While the report embraces that idea that the digital single market is incomplete and a source of untapped potential, the Committee nonetheless urges the EC to take a more “holistic” view of digital infrastructure and consider elements beyond connectivity. In line with the critiques of the Council of the EU, the ITRE Committee appears more sceptical of the EC’s apparent view on consolidation, stating simply, “competition between operators of all sizes remains a key driver for investment”. However, the report does acknowledge and support the EC’s proposals for more harmonisation in spectrum planning, specifically pointing out the upper 6GHz band, as well as efforts to extend licences and ease renewal processes. Compared to the White Paper, the report stresses consumer interests in network development, particularly in the context of rural broadband access, as well as mobile coverage and capacity in both dense urban and rural areas.
