IBC2026: Making the case for Europe’s sovereign media cloud
European public service media have taken a decisive step toward a shared cloud future, with a new feasibility study revealing that a pan-European cloud ecosystem is not only technically possible but increasingly necessary.
“This is not about saying no to US hyperscalers,” said Brian Wynne, Head of Technology Infrastructure at RTÉ and Chair of the EBU Technical Committee. “It’s about complementing, the their activities with the European cloud environment.”
The idea is to counter potential US dominance of public media infrastructure in Europe with the building of a common cloud to preserve sovereignty and resilience.
Defining the vision and strategy for EU public service media
In 2025, EBU Members jointly defined a Shared Cloud Ecosystem for European Public Service Media, complete with a vision and strategy. The feasibility study presented at IBC is the first major test of that strategy.
“The overwhelming finding is that it can work,” Wynne said. “But there are hurdles we should be aware of and navigate.”
The strategy is built on several pillars: digital sovereignty, cloud-native design, hybrid portability, shared innovation, and the ability for European public service broadcasters (PSBs) to collectively influence the cloud market rather than remain passive customers of hyperscalers.
Professor Thomas Streinz, Joint Chair at the European University Institute, who co-authored the study, said the team conducted extensive background research and interviewed 13 PSBs plus cloud suppliers, policymakers and academics.
The findings confirmed that PSBs rely on multiple cloud providers, that US hyperscalers dominate current deployments and that migration costs and organisational complexity remain barriers.
“None of these barriers are insurmountable,” Streinz said.
More interesting, is the emerging appetite for a mixed ecosystem of EU and non-EU cloud providers. “This shift aligns with the EBU’s sovereignty goals,” he said. “Provided there is political will, financial capacity, and a willingness to overcome organisational and social challenges.”
One surprising result was the lack of enthusiasm for shared solutions. Despite the strategy’s emphasis on “build once, share many times,” many PSBs admitted they are not yet designing systems with sharing in mind.
“You sense less of a mind-sharing mindset than expected,” Streinz said. “That is something the strategy leaves open and something organisations will need to figure out.”
Cloud becomes a regulated industry
Cloud providers in Europe are facing rising regulatory obligations, while PSBs’ obligations remain largely unchanged.
“Public service media must anticipate what regulation will look like not just what it is today,” Streinz said.
The EU Cloud and AI Development Act for example “will define what sovereign cloud” actually means,” he said. “It will introduce assurance levels cloud providers must meet to serve public sector bodies.”
Another key piece of legislation is the EU’s Public Procurement Act which spans 300 pages and introduces significant changes.
“This will reshape how PSBs procure cloud services,” he said.
“Crucially, these laws are not written with public service media in mind but could be influenced.
“There is an opportunity here,” he said. “For once, regulation can be leveraged to your advantage.”
He also noted that cloud has been recognised as critical infrastructure in sectors like banking but not yet in public service media.
“We think that maybe it should be,” he said.
Need for collaboration
While the feasibility study highlighted the need for European cloud alternatives, StackIT’s represents one of the companies hoping to fill that gap.
StackIT began as a private cloud for German retailer Schwarz Group in 2018 and launched its public cloud two years ago. Brosi said the company has built a strong footprint in regulated industries and is now seeing rising interest from media organisations.
“They all tell us the same,” Tobias Brosi, Senior Sales Manager said. “We want to reduce our dependencies.”
StackIT positions itself as a sovereign, European alternative to US and Chinese hyperscalers.
“We don’t want to sell anything we don’t have,” he said. “We need collaboration. We cannot do it on our own. For the time being, we need a multi-cloud approach. The hyperscalers have a 25-year head start. We are still at the beginning.”
Brosi emphasised the importance of emerging media standards such as the EBU’s software defined digital media facility (DMF) which define future media architectures.
“If there’s huge client demand, we will work on those topics,” he said. “Media is a people business. We need to build this together.”
Going forward, using clear governance models, the study recommends prioritizing use cases and a coalition of willing broadcasters.
“If you want to work together, you need to figure out how, rather than waiting for all PSBs to move at once,” Streinz said.
Wynne agreed: “You can’t do everything all at once. But you can move ahead. Maybe not with everyone, but with those ready to develop.”
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