Establish a software escrow mechanism with a trusted European third party, or publicly commit to releasing the source code under defined circumstances#
What this is, concretely#
This commitment addresses a specific but fundamental question of domain 5 of the Sovereignty Profile: what happens to your clients if you disappear? Disappearance through bankruptcy, liquidation, cessation of activity, hostile takeover by a non-EU entity that dismantles the offer, or a unilateral decision to close the service. Without a prepared arrangement, your clients lose access to their tool with no recourse, and their data may become difficult to operate.
The commitment offers two mechanisms, alternative or cumulative. Software escrow with a trusted European third party consists of depositing the up-to-date source code of your solution with a neutral third party (typically a notary, a specialised legal escrow provider, or a foundation), under a contract that defines precisely the circumstances of release of the code to clients (confirmed bankruptcy, liquidation, announced cessation of service). The alternative is a public release commitment: you publish on your website an explicit promise to release the source code under a free licence under described circumstances (for example: “in the event of cessation of activity, the source code of the current stable version will be released under AGPL v3 in a public repository within 60 days of the announcement”).
Why this commitment matters#
Thesis 13 of the manifesto grounds this commitment: “Technological sovereignty is not an end in itself. It is the condition under which an organisation — a business, an administration, an individual — can continue to operate its data and conduct its operations, whatever happens: provider failure, geopolitical conflict, sanctions, hostile takeover, unilateral flip by a publisher. It is a right, not a comfort.” Software escrow or a public release commitment are the concrete mechanisms by which you give your clients the guarantee of exercising that right even if you disappear.
The commitment also protects your clients against less dramatic but more frequent scenarios: a strategic pivot that drops your flagship product, an acquisition by a foreign actor that closes the European service, a quiet shutdown of a module your clients depend on. Without a prepared commitment, these scenarios leave clients with no recourse. With a commitment, they have a continuity path.
The commitment resonates with the spirit of domain 5 of the Sovereignty Profile (continuity). It logically complements pub-001-publish-sovereignty-profile: if you publish your Profile and domain 5 is hollow, your credibility is limited; if domain 5 cites a concrete escrow or a public commitment, your credibility grows.
A concrete example#
A French SaaS publisher of document management for mid-sized companies (ETIs), around 40 employees, takes this commitment in May 2026 with an 18-month horizon. Management explores both options. Software escrow via a specialised notary represents an annual cost of about 4,800 euros and requires the formalisation of a tripartite contract with clients. The public release commitment is free but legally lighter.
The publisher opts for a combination. A software escrow is set up with a French legal escrow provider for successive stable versions, with quarterly updating. In parallel, a public commitment is published on the website on a dedicated page: it specifies that the source code of the current stable version will be released under AGPL v3 in a public Codeberg repository within 60 days of the official announcement of cessation of service, and that the migration conditions (data export in open formats, documented migration scripts) will be published simultaneously. The standard client contract refers to both arrangements.
By the end of the 18 months, the publisher integrates mention of these arrangements in its Sovereignty Profile, in its commercial proposals, and in responses to procurement-listing questionnaires. Several public-sector clients mention that this twin guarantee weighed positively in their renewal decision.
Anti-pattern to avoid#
A commitment phrased in vague terms (“in the event of difficulty, we will commit to offering continuity solutions to our clients”) without a concrete arrangement or precise circumstances gives no real assurance. An escrow that is set up but not kept up to date quickly becomes obsolete and loses its value. A public release commitment under a non-free licence (for example, “source available” without rights of use, modification, and redistribution) does not respect the spirit of the device.
Success indicators#
By the 18-month horizon, you can reasonably consider this commitment fulfilled if a concrete arrangement is in place (active and contractually defined escrow, or public release commitment under a clearly stated free licence), if the triggering circumstances are publicly documented, and if mention of the arrangement is integrated into your client contracts or your public documentation.
JSON schema category: publication. Default horizon: 18 months. Applicable to: businesses.