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European DIGITAL SME Alliance

DIGITAL SME

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance represents small and medium enterprises in the digital sector across European policy, business and standards.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Philippe Van Damme (Deputy Director-General Informatics) and

23 Jan 2026 · Digital sovereignty, the Tech Sovereignty Catalogue and its role in supporting the uptake of sovereign European digital solutions by public administrations

Digital SME Alliance urges EU to prioritize technological sovereignty

9 Jan 2026
Topic — The Commission is reviewing the 2030 targets for Europe's digital transformation.
Message — The Alliance proposes introducing sovereignty as an overarching dimension across all targets. They recommend reducing foreign digital dependency to 50% while prioritizing European procurement.123
Why — Mandatory procurement targets would provide European SMEs a significant market advantage.4
Impact — Non-European tech giants lose their dominant position within the European digital ecosystem.5
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Digital SME Alliance demands SME-inclusive European Quantum Act

15 Dec 2025
Topic — EU initiative to accelerate research, development, and industrial deployment of quantum technologies.
Message — The Alliance advocates for dedicated European instruments that guarantee SMEs equal access to testing environments and quantum infrastructures. They call for a publicly funded skills program and financial support for small business participation in standardization.123
Why — Small firms would achieve greater technical sovereignty and lower costs for adopting secure-by-design quantum technologies.45
Impact — Non-European hyperscalers lose their dominant market position as independent European quantum capabilities and skills develop.678
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European DIGITAL SME Alliance urges exemptions from new digital rules

24 Oct 2025
Topic — The EU is consulting on new consumer protection rules for digital markets.
Message — The group calls for strengthening current laws rather than creating new ones. They demand that micro and small enterprises be exempt from any new requirements. Rules should instead focus on large platforms with significant market power.12
Why — Small tech firms would avoid high compliance costs and burdensome administrative requirements.34
Impact — Dominant global platforms would face stricter enforcement and new restrictions on their practices.56
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European DIGITAL SME Alliance demands proportional digital simplification

14 Oct 2025
Topic — The Commission is proposing a digital omnibus to simplify rules and relieve businesses.
Message — The group requests a size-based approach and enforcement readiness aligned with available guidance. They advocate for standardized, machine-readable reports and harmonized definitions across all digital regulations. Flexible enforcement of the AI Act is sought until support tools are fully operational.123
Why — Streamlined compliance would lower costs and remove barriers to the digital market.4
Impact — Large manufacturers may face restricted power to withhold data using trade secrets.5
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Digital SME Alliance urges simple harmonized rules for startups

30 Sept 2025
Topic — The EU initiative proposes a harmonized corporate legal framework for innovative companies.
Message — The Alliance demands a simple regulation accessible to all small businesses. The framework must address barriers in tax law and ensure sovereignty.123
Why — This would simplify cross-border expansion and reduce the regulatory costs of scaling.45
Impact — Non-European firms could face exclusion due to strict new ownership and sovereignty rules.6
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Meeting with Charlotte Merlier (Cabinet of Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič), Dārta Tentere (Cabinet of Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič)

30 Sept 2025 · Digital trade strategy

Digital SME Alliance urges broader DMA scope to include AI

23 Sept 2025
Topic — The European Commission is reviewing the Digital Markets Act to ensure fair markets.
Message — The group calls for expanding the DMA's scope to include cloud services and artificial intelligence. They also advocate for stronger interoperability rules and a formal role for SMEs in enforcement.123
Why — Smaller firms would gain fairer access to digital infrastructure and market opportunities.45
Impact — Large dominant platforms would face stricter limits on how they bundle their services.67
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Meeting with Egelyn Braun (Cabinet of Commissioner Michael McGrath)

17 Sept 2025 · Exchange of views on the forthcoming 28th regime, Digital Fairness Act and simplification agenda

Meeting with Alex Agius Saliba (Member of the European Parliament)

5 Sept 2025 · Democratic Tech Alliance

Meeting with Alexandra Geese (Member of the European Parliament) and Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand Services in Europe and

2 Sept 2025 · Event: Democratic Tech Alliance

Response to Revision of the Standardisation Regulation

21 Jul 2025

This submission provides the input to the call for evidence by the European DIGITAL SME Alliance, Europes largest association of ICT small and medium-sized enterprises, representing over 45,000 digital companies. DIGITAL SME plays a central role in amplifying SME voices in both European and international standardisation. Our experts actively contribute to over 20 ICT-related technical areas, including AI, data, cybersecurity, and blockchain, and participate in high-level bodies such as the High-Level Forum on Standardisation, the MSP on ICT Standardisation, and governance structures of ETSI. Through initiatives like StandICT, BlockStand, and CyberStand, we support SME participation in international standardisation efforts, enabling firsthand insight into the barriers and opportunities SMEs face. Please find our contribution in the attached document.
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Digital SME Alliance demands sovereign and accessible EU data economy

18 Jul 2025
Topic — The European Commission is seeking views on streamlining EU data-sharing rules.
Message — The alliance wants guaranteed access to industrial data and public information. They advocate for EU-level data storage and stricter rules for interoperability.12
Why — These measures would allow smaller firms to compete with global tech giants.34
Impact — Non-EU cloud providers and large data holders face reduced market dominance.56
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Digital SME Alliance Urges Sovereign Cloud Rules for Europe

3 Jul 2025
Topic — The Commission is seeking views on expanding European cloud and AI infrastructure capacity.
Message — They demand binding sovereignty requirements and public procurement preferences for European providers. They also seek regulatory action against anti-competitive bundling and restrictive software licensing.12
Why — These rules would level the playing field and boost European SME market competitiveness.3
Impact — Large non-EU tech providers would face restricted access to European strategic infrastructure projects.4
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Meeting with Barbara Bonvissuto (Director Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs)

30 Jun 2025 · Exchange of views on the reform of 1025/2012, discussion on the role of EU SME’s and digital sector in standardisation.

Meeting with Roberto Viola (Director-General Communications Networks, Content and Technology) and

23 Jun 2025 · Roundtable discussion on developing a sovereign Cloud Edge Continuum

Digital SME Alliance demands priority for homegrown AI infrastructure

3 Jun 2025
Topic — The initiative aims to accelerate industrial AI adoption and boost European competitiveness.
Message — The group demands homegrown European computing infrastructure and preferential public procurement for local firms. They want dedicated quotas for SMEs to access computing power and infrastructure. Finally, they seek manageable compliance costs and financial support for employee training.1234
Why — These measures would secure market share and reduce costs for small tech providers.5
Impact — Foreign technology giants and large developers face reduced market access and stricter compliance.67
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Response to International Digital Strategy

21 May 2025

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance , representing more than 45000 tech SMEs from across Europe, supports the EUs ambition to lead a secure, democratic, and sovereign digital transformation globally. As the EU prepares its International Digital Strategy, it is critical to recognise and empower European tech players as agents of technological sovereignty, innovation, and digital diplomacy. Please find attached the European DIGITAL SME Alliance's response to the Call for Evidence on the International Digital Strategy.
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Meeting with Manuel Mateo Goyet (Acting Head of Unit Communications Networks, Content and Technology) and Dynamo S.p.A.

21 May 2025 · DG CONNECT E2 potential stakeholder activities

Meeting with Alexandra Geese (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs and

14 May 2025 · Event: Democratic Tech Alliance

Meeting with Manuel Mateo Goyet (Acting Head of Unit Communications Networks, Content and Technology)

14 May 2025 · DG CONNECT E2 policy initiatives in Cloud and AI and potential stakeholder activities

Response to EU Start-up and Scale-up Strategy

17 Mar 2025

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance (DIGITAL SME) welcomes the initiative by the European Commission to launch a Startup and Scale-up Strategy to address hurdles faced by European innovative SMEs, start-ups, scale-ups. These challenges constitute barriers to the growth of these companies and burdens for them to scale and develop their innovations within the European (Digital) Single Market. The result? Many European innovative companies leave the EU. The EU should address challenges faced by European SMEs and start-ups through a comprehensive strategy that enables them to innovate and step-up Europe´s industrial capacity in critical technologies and sectors, e.g. when it comes to digital technologies. As a general consideration, DIGITAL SME stresses that to realise a truly European Start-up and Scale-up Strategy, Europe must include European tech SMEs as its core protagonists and promote European Tech Sovereignty at large. Access to finance and markets as well as reducing fragmentation shall be granted not only to European start-ups and scale-ups but also guaranteed to well established, technological advanced European digital SMEs that often struggle to obtain access to investors and to cross-border markets. In the context of promoting access to finance, talent, and markets, the EU must prioritise technological sovereignty by delivering strategic infrastructures rather than focusing on fragmented funding initiatives. A successful strategy will: remove regulatory fragmentation, promote fair competition in digital markets, and invest in infrastructure that enables long-term European technological leadership. Please find attached the challenges and concrete actions we have identified in the areas of access to finance, regulatory and bureaucratic burdens and fragmentation, access to markets, access to talent, access to infrastructure, knowledge, and services. DISCLAIMER: Please note that this is a draft response under internal discussion, please note that a full position on the startup and scale-up strategy will be published at a later stage.
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Meeting with Matthias Ecke (Member of the European Parliament)

6 Mar 2025 · Industriepolitik | Digitalwirtschaft

Digital SME Alliance urges Buy European Tech Act

31 Jan 2025
Topic — The Commission is consulting on ways to update the European single market for 2025.
Message — The Alliance calls for a Buy European Tech Act to favor local digital products. They want a European e-commerce network to challenge the dominance of large platforms. The group also requests unified tax laws to end legal fragmentation.12
Why — Standardized rules would reduce the high cost of navigating various national legal systems.3
Impact — Major global platforms would lose their dominant control over European online retail.45
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Meeting with Mario Furore (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

30 Jan 2025 · Incontro conoscitivo

Meeting with Christel Schaldemose (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

22 Jan 2025 · Protection of minors

Meeting with Arba Kokalari (Member of the European Parliament)

21 Jan 2025 · SMEs & digital policy

Meeting with Alexandra Geese (Member of the European Parliament)

10 Dec 2024 · 2024 DIGITAL SME Summit

Meeting with Nina Carberry (Member of the European Parliament)

18 Nov 2024 · EU Skills Policy

Meeting with Gheorghe Cârciu (Member of the European Parliament)

17 Oct 2024 · Digital sector

Meeting with Paulo Cunha (Member of the European Parliament)

16 Oct 2024 · European Digital New Deal

Meeting with Angelika Winzig (Member of the European Parliament)

16 Oct 2024 · Meeting with a representative of Digital SME Alliance

Meeting with Maria Grapini (Member of the European Parliament)

16 Oct 2024 · MANIFESTO 2030 EUROPEAN DIGITAL NEW DEAL

Meeting with Andrzej Buła (Member of the European Parliament)

14 Oct 2024 · Skills gap, EU Digital Agenda, Talent Pool

Meeting with Dan Barna (Member of the European Parliament)

14 Oct 2024 · Digital environment and the European companies

Meeting with Morten Løkkegaard (Member of the European Parliament)

2 Oct 2024 · European Digital New Deal

Response to Interim Evaluation of Digital Europe

13 Sept 2024

Our organisation is a project partner and coordinator in a number of DEP projects (a full list is provided in the attached document). In a light of the consultation, we are pleased to provide our main comments and recommendations below, while all the points are explained in greater details in the attached document. 1) We appreciate the Digital Europe Programmes (DEP) strong emphasis on the exploitation and commercialisation of developed solutions, as well as the co-funding commitment which ensures practical intentions to build on these solutions post-project. However, several issues need addressing: - return on investment often takes longer than the project duration (2-3 years), making it difficult for SMEs to invest substantial amounts upfront. While some calls offer 75% funding for SMEs, this is not consistent across all calls. A higher funding rate for technological development calls is needed to boost SME participation. Member States should also provide additional financial support or tax incentives for SMEs involved in DEP. - technological development would benefit from the involvement of certain societal groups, often represented by non-profit organisations. High co-funding rates can deter these organisations, especially those focused on skills development, from participating. We recommend reconsidering funding rates for non-profits. In order to ensure sustainability and effective post-project exploitation, we suggest placing more emphasis on sustainability models in proposal evaluations and project reviews. This could involve giving higher importance to sustainability in evaluations, focusing on it during project reviews, and potentially reducing final payments if business models or exploitation plans are insufficient. However, these measures may not apply to all projects, such as CSAs, which may have different goals. 2) Administrative costs are a significant burden, especially for innovative companies new to EU projects. Investments in proposal writing, project management, and reporting can be high and yield no immediate return. Simplifying reporting mechanisms, such as offering lump-sum funding, would help. Additionally, supporting first-time participants by increasing overheads or reducing co-funding rates could encourage more innovators to join European R&D efforts. 3) We support the restrictions on participation in strategic topic calls to EU entities and recommend extending these requirements to all DEP calls where international collaboration is not essential. A thorough analysis of entities with complex governance structures, such as associations representing diverse networks, is also necessary. 4) The DEP should allow the use of FSTP (Financial Support to Third Parties) when necessary. The current absence of this instrument creates issues, such as the need to pay VAT on service contracts with experts, which reduces the value of support provided. Allowing FSTP would address these issues and enhance project outcomes.
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Meeting with Giorgio Gori (Member of the European Parliament)

13 Sept 2024 · Presentation of priorities

Meeting with Rasa Juknevičienė (Member of the European Parliament)

10 Sept 2024 · Introduction meeting

Meeting with Radan Kanev (Member of the European Parliament)

10 Sept 2024 · European Digital New Deal and securing digital leadership and sovereignty

Meeting with Daniel Attard (Member of the European Parliament)

24 Jul 2024 · Introduction to European Digital SME Alliance

Meeting with Christine Singer (Member of the European Parliament)

11 Jul 2024 · Austausch neue Legislaturperiode

Meeting with Martina Dlabajová (Member of the European Parliament)

20 Mar 2024 · Launch event of the DIGITAL SME Manifesto 2030: European Digital New Deal

Meeting with Josianne Cutajar (Member of the European Parliament)

20 Mar 2024 · A European Digital SME 2030 Manifesto - A European Digital New Deal

Meeting with Josianne Cutajar (Member of the European Parliament)

13 Feb 2024 · SME Connect Navigating change: The Digital Markets Act and its real economy ripple

Response to Evaluation of Standardisation Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012

29 Sept 2023

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance welcomes the possibility to provide its views through the initial call for evidence on the evaluation of Regulation 1025/2012. Its response can be found attached. DIGITAL SME remains at the disposal of the European Commission to substantiate further on these initial pointers - and looks forward to participating, alongside other stakeholders, in the overall evaluation process.
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Meeting with Brando Benifei (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

24 Mar 2023 · Exchange of views on the AI Act (meeting held by assistant)

Meeting with Maurits-Jan Prinz (Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton)

6 Mar 2023 · Standard Essential Patents (SEP)and SME policy

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and British Chamber of Commerce | EU Belgium

21 Jun 2022 · AI Act

Meeting with Josianne Cutajar (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

2 Feb 2022 · Digital Decade Policy Programme

Response to Digital Services Act: deepening the Internal Market and clarifying responsibilities for digital services

31 Mar 2021

On 15 December 2020, the European Commission has published its long-awaited rules for digital services and digital markets. The Digital Services Act Package aims at tackling some of the main issues which have been associated with large platforms: the spread of hate speech and illegal and unsafe products (Digital Services Act); and the dominance of gatekeeper platforms in certain markets (Digital Markets Act). DIGITAL SME welcomes the proposals and that the European Commission is taking bold steps to bring back fairness to digital markets. DIGITAL SME believes that Europe needs an open and competitive digital ecosystem that enables innovation. We believe that the proposals are a step in the right direction to address the challenges that SMEs are facing in Europe’s digital economy. DIGITAL SME’s response in this position paper focuses on the Digital Services Act in response to the European Commission consultation on the proposal. With the Digital Services Act (DSA), the European Commission aims to create harmonised rules across Europe, e.g., for notice-and-action mechanisms. DIGITAL SME strongly welcomes: - The general aim for further harmonisation of the Digital Single Market. - That the Commission refrained from taking a one-size-fits-all approach. - That the proposal foresees exemptions for micro and small enterprises, but we believe that the exemption should be extended to medium-sized enterprises. - Further, we welcome that the DSA proposal upholds the benefits of the e-Commerce Directive in terms of o the Country-of-Origin principle, o the prohibition of general monitoring obligations and o limited liability.
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Response to Europe’s digital decade: 2030 digital targets

9 Mar 2021

European DIGITAL SME Alliance has outlined ten priorities for Europe’s Digital Future in its Manifesto of 2019 (https://www.digitalsme.eu/manifesto/). In this Manifesto, we sketched different ideas for a way forward to support Europe’s successful transition to a digital economy. For instance, we stress the importance of a level-playing field for SMEs in the digital economy, supported by a strong competition framework and fairness in taxation. Other important aspects are: Digital skills, digital infrastructure, innovation, emerging technologies. Based on DIGITAL SME’s Manifesto for Europe’s Digital Future, we support the digital targets (1. Digital infrastructures, 2. Digital education and skills, 3. Digital transformation, and 4. Digital government) mentioned in the Roadmap. At DIGITAL SME, we strongly believe that Europe needs to build on its strong SME-base to manage the digital transformation. SMEs are vital to the European economy: SMEs form 99% of Europe's businesses1 and account for two-thirds of total employment. The digital revolution is not only about large tech companies but also essentially about start-ups and SMEs that provide or use digital solutions. Their variety is immense; from innovative and fast-growing companies that provide or use digital solutions to those that face significant challenges such as acquiring the necessary skills to benefit from digital technologies. SMEs are integrated in local communities and active on global markets at the same time. In the attached consultation response, more detailed comments on the proposed roadmap are available. We would like to ensure that SMEs are represented in upcoming consultations and workshops and we stand ready to take part in this dialogue.
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Meeting with Anouk Faber (Cabinet of Commissioner Nicolas Schmit), Christoph Nerlich (Cabinet of Commissioner Nicolas Schmit)

15 Jun 2020 · Meeting on the recovery strategy and the sustainable digitalisation of SMEs.

Meeting with Agnieszka Skonieczna (Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton)

7 May 2020 · COVID, SME policy

Meeting with Margrethe Vestager (Executive Vice-President) and

21 Feb 2020 · Digital policy

Meeting with Andrea Beltramello (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis), Zaneta Vegnere (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis)

21 Feb 2020 · SMEs in digital sector, IT companies developing digital solutions for other sectors. Role of digital SMEs in transfer of digital skills to other SMEs. The European Skill for SMEs Partnership

Meeting with Daniel Mes (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans)

14 Feb 2020 · Digital aspects of the European Green Deal

Meeting with Maximilian Strotmann (Cabinet of Vice-President Andrus Ansip)

3 Jun 2019 · Europe’s digital future and the role of SMEs