The event “The Cloud under Regulatory Test. Future Prospects in Light of the White Paper and the Draghi Report“, an event which saw the participation of Alessio Butti, Undersecretary of State, and several experts and representatives from the technology sector.
The debate focused on theimportance of balancing regulation and innovation to support the role of cloud computing in digital transformation. Introduced by Claudio Velardi, President of the Optimists&Rational Foundation, the event saw the interventions of important figures such as Silvia Compagnucci by Open Gate Italia, David Abecassis by Analysys Mason, Federico Boccardi of Amazon Web Services, Adm. Andrea Billet (Director of the Certification and Supervision Service), Rosario Cerra (President of the Digital Economy Center), Eleanor Faina (General Manager of Anitec-Assinform) and Laura Rovizzi, CEO of Open Gate Italia.
Digital Transformation and Regulatory Challenges
The heart of the debate focused on the digital transformation, increasingly crucial to meet the growing Internet service needs by citizens, businesses and Public Administration. In particular, the discussion was on need for a regulatory framework that allows technology companies to contribute to progress without being held back by overly restrictive rules. White Paper (How to manage Europe's digital infrastructure needs?) European Commission, published last February, highlighted how urgent it is rethinking the regulations to prevent innovation from being hindered by regulatory excesses, while protecting the competitiveness of European companies.
Regulation and Innovation: A Crucial Dilemma
During the debates, the importance of emerged finding a balance between regulatory approaches “hard”, binding, and “soft”, more flexible governance tools. This is to support a dynamic cloud development, capable of addressing ever-evolving technological challenges. The Draghi Report reiterated the urgency of overcome regulatory rigidities which, in many cases, slow down the large-scale adoption of the cloud, limiting its impact on the digitalization of businesses and public administrations.
The importance of cloud computing
Cloud computing is, in fact, crucial for the objectives of the European Union in terms of sustainability, innovation and global competitiveness. However, its full potential in Italy and Europe is limited by regulatory barriers that hinder its adoption and development, making an integrated approach to the digital ecosystem necessary.
A current topic concerns the convergence between cloud and telecommunications, proposed in the White Paper as an opportunity to “level the regulatory playing field”. However, experts point out that, while complementary, the two industries remain distinct. The “cloudification” of telecommunications, in fact, is a phenomenon that is occurring in a similar way to other sectors such as healthcare, automotive and energy, where the cloud provides horizontal solutions for innovation.
According to the Analysys Mason estimates, it is expected that the global expense of telecommunications operators for the public cloud will increase from 14% in 2023 to 27% in 2028, with growth mainly in support systems. Network virtualization, however, is moving toward the private cloud, with less than 1% of network workloads migrating to the public cloud.
“Il cloud is not just a technology: it's a horizontal enabler which enables different sectors – such as automotive, telecommunications and finance – to accelerate innovation. Aws supports hundreds of thousands of organizations in Europe, from small businesses to large enterprises, from educational institutions to public bodies, helping them in their digital transformation. New regulations should be applied with caution and with targeted tools, avoiding solutions that distort competition or slow down the digital transformation that companies are facing through the cloud” he explained during his speech Federico Boccardi di Amazon Web Services.
Current regulatory instruments
The comparison also touched on theeffectiveness of regulations already in force, like the DataAct, NIS2 directive and the Digital Markets Act (Dma). These instruments address cybersecurity and competition risks, responding to the needs of an evolving digital ecosystem. The Data Act focuses on data portability and interoperability, while the NIS2 directive improves cybersecurity in outsourcing operations. Finally, the Dma promotes transparency in digital markets and fights anti-competitive practices, protecting freedom of choice for consumers.
Towards a Sovereign Europe in the Cloud
“Europe aims to consolidate its digital sovereignty promoting theSecure and competitive cloud infrastructures to support digital transformation. However, the international picture highlights significant challenges: the current hegemony of American hyperscalers and European regulatory fragmentation are obstacles to overcome. We would like create an Fdic for the realization of a large European trade federation of Cloud Service Providers to compete with global giants and build, if I may use the comparison, an 'Airbus of the Cloud'. Early adoption of these technologies is essential for support technologies like AI, as well as ensuring data security and Europe's economic competitiveness in the global landscape" declared the Undersecretary of State Alessio Butti in his conclusions.
In a rapidly changing Europe, as underlined by the Draghi Report, the the challenge is to regulate without curbing innovation, to ensure digital sovereignty and a competitive ecosystem. Italy and Europe are at a crucial crossroads, where the future of the cloud represents a strategic issue for digital sovereignty and competitiveness.
