The vast majority of digital services we use in Denmark and Europe are American. But there are actually several popular software services that are European or non-American.

By highlighting these, I’d like to emphasise that:

    • There are good European, non-American and open-source solutions available. We just haven’t heard of many of them.

    • Some of the popular solutions we already use are non-American, even though you might not realise it (I certainly didn’t).

    • We need more European tech solutions to strengthen our security, independence, competitiveness and, ultimately, to reinforce  European values. 

    • Businesses and public bodies should, at the very least, investigate whether European alternatives exist before rushing to choose an American service. As with all other forms of choice and procurement, one must both do one’s research and make a choice that aligns with one’s values and objectives.

Let’s take a look at the selected digital services. I have based my selection on the fact that they are European or non-American-owned, but that doesn’t mean they can’t use Microsoft, AWS, etc.

    1. WeTransfer – this service is used to transfer large files. It is headquartered in Amsterdam and is currently owned by the Italian company Bending Spoons.

2. Doodle – this popular service has even become a verb; “let’s Doodle when we’re going to meet up again.” You can also use Doodle to organise event registrations and so on. The platform is Swiss.

    3. Vinted has become very popular for selling second-hand clothes, bags, shoes and so on. It is based in Lithuania and has over 2,000 employees.

    4. Blockbuster still exists, and here you can rent films for streaming. It is now Swedish-owned as part of the Bonnier Group.

The next three services are not European, but neither, as one might assume, are they American.

    5. Trello is a popular platform for creating lists and so-called Kanban boards, either for personal use or collaboration. The service is owned by the Australian company Atlassian.

    6. Canva is used by us non-designers to create graphic designs. This could be content for social media, presentations, animations and videos, etc. It is also from Australia.

7. Unsplash is a great place to find images that you are free to use on your website, in presentations, etc. Unsplash is Canadian.

See my full list of alternatives (in Danish)

See Dataethics.eu’s list of tools

Translated with DeepL.com

Photo: Screendump from Vinted.com