From technological dependency to economic capture: the cost of cloud & software services inflation to Europe

Asterès publishes a second study commissioned by the Cigref. Focusing on the capture of economic value linked to technological dependencies, it presents an original and unequivocal assessment. The rising costs of cloud and software services are no longer merely a budgetary challenge; they are becoming a systemic threat to the European economy.

In a previous study, published in April 2025 for Cigref, Asterès estimated the total expenditure of European organisations on cloud and software services for the year 2024 at around €400 billion per year, of which €330 billion (or 83%) was spent solely on American companies. The study also highlighted that 80% of this value was generated in the United States. This means that nearly €264 billion (mainly the figure quoted by commentators) contributes to the US economy each year, thereby supporting nearly 1.9 million direct, indirect and induced jobs.

For this second study, which focuses on the impact of current and projected price rises over the next five years for cloud and software services, Asterès has used the estimated total expenditure in Europe within this market (€400 billion per year) as the basis for its calculations.