On 13 June, at the fourth Cloud Computing World Forum in London, the European Commission gave an update on its work with the European Cloud Strategy. At the conference, Megan Richards, Acting Deputy Director-General for DG INFSO, presented the key parts of the strategy and stressed that there has been extensive preparations and discussions on EU-level on the matter. The strategy will consist of three parts; a legal framework, research support actions – especially focusing on security and privacy issues – and market stimulating measures helping for example the public sector align their demands for cloud computing.

According to Richards, the strategy will put distinct focus on the security aspect of Cloud Computing and also welcomed the new data protection legislation, which will be important as all member states will have to apply to the same rules. Hopefully this will foster a faster adoption of Cloud across the EU. To this, Richards added that there is a need for better broadband rollout, more standardised legislation and less fragmentation in markets. In conclusion, Richards said that it is important that the Cloud Strategy strikes the right balance in terms of timing and making sure neither industry nor consumers are damaged. According to the Commission, the aim is to make sure that all the interests of all different parties are covered.

The strategy is now being finalized and discussed at various levels in the EU and is expected to be adopted soon. The Commission indicated that the strategy will be released in July.

Link to the event: http://www.cloudwf.com/index.php