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Denmark’s Government Ditches Microsoft for Open Source
Quoting: Denmark's Government Ditches Microsoft for Open Source - OMG! Ubuntu —
Up to half of employees at Denmark’s Ministry of Digital Affairs will be switched to (an unspecified version of) Linux in place of Windows, and move from Office 365 to the leading open source productivity suite LibreOffice.
Denmark’s minister of digitisation, Caroline Stage Olsen, confirmed the migration is in progress to Danish media outlet Politiken (paywalled), adding that if all goes well the whole ministry will switch to using open source software by the autumn.
The move is being made to action the Danish government’s ‘digitalisation strategy’ which is making ‘digital sovereignty’ a priority for all government departments. Denmark, like many countries, wants to have greater control over its own digital infrastructure, data, and cloud services.
Of course, making the switch is one thing, whether it sticks another — something Olsen herself notes.
PCMag:
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Denmark Wants to Dump Microsoft Software for Linux, LibreOffice
A government ministry in Denmark is preparing to phase out Microsoft software and switch to the open-source Linux and LibreOffice.
The country’s Ministry for Digital Affairs will kick off the transition next month by dumping Windows and Microsoft 365, starting first with half of its employees. “If everything goes as expected, all employees will be on an open-source solution during the autumn,” Danish news outlet Politiken reports.
The change promises to save on costs and reduce the ministry’s dependency on US software. Denmark’s Minister for Digital Affairs, Caroline Stage, tells Politiken that "digital sovereignty" is now a priority under the ministry’s new four-year digitalization strategy.
MSN (Microsoft):
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Denmark wants to replace Windows and Office with Linux and LibreOffice as it seeks to embrace digital sovereignty
Denmark is embarking on an ambitious effort to reduce its reliance on proprietary software from foreign tech giants by transitioning its government systems away from Microsoft offerings Windows and Office 365.
The Danish Ministry of Digitalization reportedly plans a phased migration to Linux operating systems and LibreOffice for office productivity.
The initiative is driven by concerns over digital sovereignty and the strategic risks of depending on foreign providers, particularly those based in the United States.
Linux Magazine:
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Is This the Year of Linux? » Linux Magazine
The Danish Ministry of Digital Affairs has decided to cut ties with Microsoft Windows and Office and adopt Linux and LibreOffice.
As first reported by Politiken, Denmark is poised to make a major change with regard to the software it uses.
The migration from Windows/Office to Linux/LibreOffice will take place between June and August for half of the Ministry of Digital Affairs, and the rest of the staff will follow suit during the months of September and November.
The move is happening because Denmark’s Minister for Digital Affairs (Caroline Stage Olsen) indicates that Denmark wants to have control over its data and systems.
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One of the most tech-savvy countries in the world just dumped Windows — what's your excuse?
Some say it will never be the year of Linux, but that's not true for Denmark's Office of Digital Affairs.
Last week, Denmark's Digitalization Secretary announced that her office is bidding Microsoft farewell and switching to Linux and open-source software. This wasn't the result of a fallout with Microsoft or even the European Union's Digital Markets Act.
It was about digital freedom and the role open-source software plays in that. Considering Denmark is one of the world's leaders in technological expertise, this could potentially inspire more organizations, government agencies, and even individual users to switch to Linux and open-source software.
XDA:
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Even the Danish government is sick of Microsoft, switching to Linux and LibreOffice instead
We talk a lot about Microsoft's problems at XDA, and how the company seems to be trying to drive Windows 11 into the ground a lot of the time. But it's not just us saying it, and in fact, a recent piece of news out of Denmark suggests that governments are getting tired of Microsoft, too.
PC Gamer:
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Denmark is switching to Linux | PC Gamer
Denmark is switching to Linux, says its Ministry of Digital Affairs, in a move that exchanges Windows and Office 365 for Linux and LibreOffice.
Yes, that Danish government. The government of a nation of roughly 6 million people, which is the southernmost Scandinavian nation and/or the northernmost part of Central Europe, comprised of the Jutland peninsula and adjacent islands.
It'll migrate about half of the Ministry of Digital Affairs away from Windows this summer, reports Danish newspaper Politiken. The move was attributed to a desire for greater digital sovereignty.
Might be slop, unfamiliar site:
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Europe embraces Linux and open-source in the race for digital sovereignty
European countries are increasingly adopting Linux and open-source software to reclaim digital sovereignty and reduce reliance on US-based technology giants amid rising geopolitical tensions.
In a strategic pivot, Denmark and Germany are shifting away from US-based proprietary software and embracing open-source platforms.
This move isn’t only about cost, but about power, control, and independence in an unstable geopolitical tech landscape.
The trend is gaining momentum across Europe, and the main goal is digital sovereignty.
According to Chad Metcalf, chief architect at Continue, an open-source AI platform designed with sovereignty in mind, "Organizations should control their data and choose where their AI workloads run. Whether your drivers are cost optimization, IP protection, compliance requirements, or sovereignty concerns, the underlying need is the same – data ownership and deployment flexibility."
"Digital sovereignty represents one end of the spectrum of data control requirements that Continue was designed to address," Metcalf adds.
"For some organizations, sovereignty isn't just a preference – it's a business requirement. Continue's architecture naturally supports these use cases because it's exactly what the platform was built to solve."