Officials procured Microsoft software to the tune of €178.5 million in the year 2020

The German federal government's spending on software, cloud, and server services from Microsoft has sparked controversy, with some claiming that the costs are escalating out of control. In 2015, the government paid 43.5 million euros to Microsoft, with an originally planned 57.2 million for 2019. However, in reality, the payments to Microsoft in 2019 were three times the originally planned amount, amounting to approximately 178.5 million euros in the 2020 fiscal year.

This dependence on Microsoft is contrary to all declarations of intent to promote more digital sovereignty by the federal government. The federal government claims to demand compliance with applicable laws from Microsoft and has set higher security requirements. However, Victor Perli, budget expert of the Left, states that Microsoft is "coldly exploiting the dependence of the federal administration" and that the costs are out of control.

The Left faction in the Bundestag made a request to the federal government regarding the increasing dependence on Microsoft. An analysis by PwC in 2019 warned of an "urgent need for action" due to the federal administration's dependence on Microsoft, which was leading to issues contrary to the strategic goals of the IT of the federal government.

The response from the federal government to this request was reported by "Spiegel" in its new issue. Perli suggests promoting more solutions with open source code instead of passively watching the situation.

Efforts to increase digital sovereignty often involve promoting open-source software, supporting local IT companies, and enhancing data protection policies. However, the specific measures taken by the German federal government since 2021 to reduce its dependence on Microsoft products and promote digital sovereignty are not detailed in the provided search results.

The issue of the federal government's dependence on Microsoft and the associated costs is a topic of ongoing debate, with concerns being raised about the potential impact on digital sovereignty and the financial implications for the government.

Officials procured Microsoft software to the tune of €178.5 million in the year 2020