Big cloud, meet Brussels

A while back I wrote about data portability and used mobile phone number portability as an analogy: mobile operators opened up because they were forced to by regulators, not out of kindness. And, when they did, the lock-in evaporated. I mentioned the EU was pushing in a similar direction for data but that I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Well… I’m breathing again, a little. The European Commission is expected to classify both AWS and Azure as gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act this week. Which means mandatory interoperability and data portability; same idea as letting you keep your number when you change mobile operators.

The usual caveats apply: Apple and Meta were fined under the DMA and nothing of substance has changed yet, mostly just malicious compliance. Enforcement is a different fight from designation.

But the clouds are clearing (literally) and that changes the calculus: if your organisation runs on AWS or Azure, now’s the time to figure out what your exit would take. Not because you need to move immediately, but because you should know the answer before you need to make that move.

Colin