The development and spread of "open source" software drives the growth of the European economy. A study published by the European Commission analyses the economic impact of "open source" software and hardware on the European economy. It is estimated that in 2018 EU-based companies invested around 1 billion euros in "open source" software, with a positive impact on the European economy of between 65 and 95 billion euros.
The study predicts that a 10 % increase in contributions to "open source" software would generate an annual increase in GDP of between 0,4 % and 0,6 % and would allow the emergence of over 600 new start-ups in the ICT sector in the EU. Case studies reveal that by purchasing open-source software rather than proprietary software, the public sector could reduce the total cost of ownership, avoid vendor-dependent effects and thereby strengthen its digital autonomy. The study makes a number of specific public policy recommendations to ensure that the public sector becomes digitally autonomous, research and innovation are open and foster European growth, as the industry is digitalised and competitive at home. In the long term, the results of the study could be used to strengthen the "open source" dimension in the development of future software and hardware policies for the EU industry.