The French government announced on Jan. 27 the rollout of its new videoconferencing platform, Visio. The domestically developed platform was created to replace U.S. tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams across all state services by 2027 as part of the French government’s broader push for digital sovereignty. Officials say the shift will also cut software licensing costs and strengthen security and confidentiality.

McGill experts are available to comment on this topic:

Emmanuelle Vaast is the Desautels 1 Chair in Digital Technology Management, Professor of Information Systems and Associate Dean of Research  at the Desautels Faculty of Management. Prof. Vaast can discuss possible implementation challenges with the rollout, the use of new technologies and potential legal and ethical issues.

emmanuelle.vaast [at] mcgill.ca (English, French)

Sonja Solomun is Assistant Professor (Research) at the Max Bell School of Public Policy and Deputy Director of the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy. Prof. Solomun can situate the rollout within the context of current geopolitical tensions and comment on digital sovereignty and digital tech governance more broadly.

sonja.solomun [at] mcgill.ca (English, French – print only)