EU tests Microsoft Teams substitute, officials criticize it

EU: The European Union is a political and economic union of 27 European member states focused on cooperation in policy, trade, and regulation. Its executive body, the European Commission, oversees internal operations and digital initiatives across institutions. In this news, the Commission has rolled out a sovereign communications backup to maintain continuity if external services face disruption. Teams: Microsoft Teams is a collaboration platform offering chat, video calls, file sharing, and project channels for teams and organizations. It serves as the primary internal communication system for many large institutions. Officials in the news continue to favor it over the tested substitute despite the push for an alternative. Microsoft: Microsoft is a global technology company that develops productivity and collaboration software, including enterprise communication platforms. It provides Microsoft Teams as a core tool for organizational messaging, calls, and file sharing. The news centers on EU efforts to create an alternative backup to this widely used service for reasons of data control and independence. User Feedback: Internal staff have criticized the new tool's performance and value compared to established platforms, with some questioning its readiness as a reliable fallback. Broader Context: Element Pro is also used by other public sector organizations including the United Nations and NATO, reflecting wider adoption of open protocols for secure collaboration. Digital Sovereignty: The European Commission introduced Element Pro over the summer as an internally hosted backup built on the Matrix protocol to ensure greater control over communications data.