Euro-Office

Euro-Office
Written inHTML, JavaScript, C++
Operating systemWindows, Linux, MacOS,[1] Android and iOS[2]
TypeProductivity software
License
Websitegithub.com/Euro-Office 
Repositorygithub.com/Euro-Office

Euro-Office is a FOSS office suite and collaborative software platform, based on software from a more restrictively licensed office suite called OnlyOffice, that provides editors for documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and PDFs. The software includes web-based applications designed for document creation, editing, and collaborative work.[3]

History

The project began in March 2026 in a quest to gain full independence from Microsoft Office being used in EU public computers.[4][5][6] The project is a collaboration between various organizations, companies, and open source developers. The original collaborators were IONOS, Nextcloud, Eurostack, XWiki, OpenProject, Soverin, Abilian and BTactic, with Office EU and Open-Xchange joining the project soon after its announcement.[7][8]

One of the first changes made to the Euro-Office codebase was to remove licensing terms deemed to be "unenforceable and non-obligatory" additions to the GNU AGPL licence.[9] Three days later, the developers of OnlyOffice responded by publicly calling these changes a licensing violation.[10][11] Soon after, OnlyOffice announced it would be suspending its partnership with Nextcloud due to the conflict.[12]

In response to these accusations, statements were issued by Nextcloud Software,[13] the Free Software Foundation,[14] and legal experts[15] asserting that both the letter and the spirit of a free software license expressly prohibit the use of license addenda to revoke the freedoms guaranteed by the original license. In the case of the addenda to the GNU AGPL license introduced by the OnlyOffice developers, they contained mutually exclusive requirements (specifically, a simultaneous prohibition on altering branding and a prohibition on the use of the trademark). The position held by the creators of the GNU AGPL—as well as by legal experts—is that restrictive supplementary clauses may be omitted from the license during redistribution; this principle is explicitly stated in Clause 10 of the original GNU AGPL license.

The first stable version was released on 9 June 2026. It was reported that OnlyOffice's allegation of license violation had been resolved.[16]

Products

Similar to OnlyOffice, the Euro-Office ecosystem consists of several core applications and tools designed for document editing, collaboration, and workspace management. These include:

Feature/Component Description
Euro-Office Docs The core document editing engine providing web-based editors for text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, PDF files, and fillable forms. It supports formats including DOCX, ODT, XLSX, ODS, PPTX, ODP, and PDF. The editors provide real-time collaborative editing with features such as comments, version history, track changes, document comparison, and built-in chat. Euro-Office Docs can be deployed on a private server or used through cloud services.

Reception

Some supporters of the open source competitor LibreOffice, questioned some of the motives and logic concerning Euro-Office[17] in using Microsoft standards by indicating that by seeking to be fully Microsoft compatible, Euro-Office is inadvertently reinforcing Microsoft going forward as the global dominant standard rather than supporting development of competing standards.[18][19][20]

References

  1. ^ Ionescu, Stefan (2022-03-26). "OnlyOffice review". TechRadar. Retrieved 2025-07-31.
  2. ^ "OnlyOffice official website". www.onlyoffice.com. Retrieved 2025-07-31.
  3. ^ Wölbert, Christian (2026-03-27). "Microsoft alternative: Nextcloud and Ionos develop open-source 'Euro-Office'". c't Magazin. Heise Zeitschriftenverlag. Retrieved 2026-03-28.
  4. ^ Davenport, Corbin (2026-03-27). "This new open-source office suite wants to replace Google Docs and Microsoft Office". How-To Geek. Retrieved 2026-03-28.
  5. ^ "Europe builds Microsoft-alternative 'Euro-Office' to reclaim digital sovereignty". Tech.eu. 2026-03-27. Retrieved 2026-03-28.
  6. ^ Salivio, Sofiah Nichole. "Euro-Office launches as Europe's open-source Office rival". IT Brief UK. Retrieved 2026-03-28.
  7. ^ Poortvliet, Jos (2026-04-22). "Euro-Office: Building momentum". Nextcloud. Retrieved 2026-05-16.
  8. ^ "Euro-Office: European industry initiative launches office suite". Nextcloud. Retrieved 2026-05-16.
  9. ^ "Commit e452ace". GitHub. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  10. ^ "ONLYOFFICE flags license violations in "Euro-Office" project by Nextcloud and IONOS". Ascensio System SIA. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  11. ^ Proven, Liam (2026-04-02). "Forking frenzy ensues after launch of Euro-Office". The Register. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
  12. ^ "Partnership with Nextcloud suspended — No impact to current partners or clients". ONLYOFFICE Blog. 2026-03-31. Retrieved 2026-05-16.
  13. ^ "Euro Office, license compliance and what open source means". Nextcloud. Retrieved 2026-05-22.
  14. ^ "AGPL is not a tool for taking freedom away". Free Software Foundation. Retrieved 2026-05-22.
  15. ^ "Badgeware, ONLYOFFICE, Nextcloud, and the Affero GPL". Software Freedom Conservancy. Retrieved 2026-05-22.
  16. ^ Euro-Office: First version of the open-source web office is here, heise online, accessed 2026-06-09
  17. ^ Hale, Craig (11 June 2026). "LibreOffice slams rival Euro-Office as a 'de facto ally' of Microsoft lock-in — as concerns over possible Russian interference rise". TechRadar. Future US, Inc. Retrieved 17 June 2026. Euro-Office defaults to Microsoft's OOXML format, encouraging vendor lock-in - LibreOffice calls the European sovereign offering a blatant "freeware" copy of MS Office - Euro-Office and its origins, OnlyOffice, are mostly created by Russian developers
  18. ^ Batt, Simon (8 June 2026). "LibreOffice accuses Euro-Office's methods as being just as bad as Microsoft's, but with an open-source angle". XDA. Valnet Publishing Group. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  19. ^ Jawad, Usama (8 June 2026). "LibreOffice developer takes a dig at Euro-Office in new open letter". NeowinFeed. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  20. ^ Batt, Simon (16 June 2026). "Euro-Office claimed to fight Microsoft, but it just made the problem worse". XDA. Valnet Publishing Group. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
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