Nearly one year after the new German federal government took office, eco – Association of the Internet Industry – has published a sobering interim assessment: bureaucracy is blocking innovation, regulatory complexity is curbing investment, and the IT industry is calling for decisive action rather than announcements.
A Mixed Record After Twelve Months
Nearly one year after the new German federal government took office, eco – Association of the Internet Industry – has released its eco Digitalpuls report, presenting an initial assessment of Germany’s digital policy. The verdict is clear: despite isolated progress, digital policy continues to lack broad impact, with many measures remaining at the conceptual stage.
The analysis evaluates 22 key digital policy initiatives using a traffic-light system across six areas of action: Digital State, Cybersecurity, AI Location Germany, Digital Infrastructure, Trust in the Network, and Combating Illegal Content and Youth Media Protection.
Of the 22 initiatives assessed, six receive a green rating, while eight each are rated yellow and red. While measures have been launched in areas such as the Germany Stack, digital identities, and the implementation of European directives, overall execution continues to fall short of stated ambitions.
IT Decision-Makers Deliver a Clear Verdict
Alongside the eco analysis, the Civey research institute surveyed 500 IT decision-makers in Germany between March 20 and April 6, 2026, as part of the eco Branchenpuls. Results are representative, with a statistical margin of error of 9.6 to 10.6 percentage points.
Industry opinion is unambiguous: 22.5 percent of respondents rate current digital policy as ‘poor,’ and 29.4 percent as ‘failing.’ Positive ratings remain a clear minority at 5.2 percent. More than a third of decision-makers (36.9 percent) see a negative impact on their own competitiveness, while only 13.9 percent view the impact as positive.
»The federal government too often remains in announcement mode when it comes to digital policy – and that is reflected in the industry’s assessment. When more than half of IT decision-makers rate policy as ‘poor’ or ‘failing,’ that is a clear wake-up call. What is needed now is less jurisdictional confusion and more implementation: faster approvals, less double regulation, and tangible relief from bureaucracy and energy costs.«
— eco spokesperson
Bureaucracy Remains the Primary Obstacle
Particularly striking: 74.9 percent of surveyed IT decision-makers identify bureaucracy as the greatest challenge in German digital policy – by a considerable margin over all other topics.
Further down the list are IT security and compliance (38.3 percent), electricity costs and network infrastructure (38.0 percent), and approval and planning processes (36.0 percent). The picture is unambiguous: the obstacles are not technological in nature, but political and administrative.
»Complex procedures, unclear requirements, double regulation, and excessive bureaucracy are currently hindering innovation and investment on a massive scale.«
— eco spokesperson
Calls for Clarity, Less Regulation, More Trust
Taken as a whole, after one year there is still no consistent picture of an innovation-friendly regulatory environment for the digital sector. Positive approaches exist but are often overshadowed or undermined by structural deficits and a continuous flow of EU requirements.
eco therefore calls for clear political signals: less double regulation, meaningful reduction of bureaucratic burdens, and greater trust in the innovative capacity of the digital economy. Germany – as the world’s third-largest economy – has the potential to become a leading digital hub, but the necessary conditions must first be established.
All results of the eco Digitalpuls are available at: go.eco.de/Digitalpuls
Dr. Jakob Jung is Editor-in-Chief of Security Storage and Channel Germany. He has been working in IT journalism for more than 20 years. His career includes Computer Reseller News, Heise Resale, Informationweek, Techtarget (storage and data center) and ChannelBiz. He also freelances for numerous IT publications, including Computerwoche, Channelpartner, IT-Business, Storage-Insider and ZDnet. His main topics are channel, storage, security, data center, ERP and CRM.
Contact via Mail: jakob.jung@security-storage-und-channel-germany.de