WASHINGTON - Revelations about vast U.S. data collection programs are starting to hit American tech companies, which are ramping up pressure for increased transparency to try to mitigate the damage.
An industry group, the Cloud Security Alliance said last month that 10% of its non-U.S. members have cancelled a contract with a U.S.-based cloud provider, and 56% said they were less likely to use an American company.
A separate report this month by the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, or ITIF, a Washington think tank, said U.S. cloud providers stand to lose $22 billion to $35 billion over the next three years due to revelations about the so-called PRISM program.
Daniel Castro, author of the report, says a loss of trust in U.S. tech firms could lead to "protectionist" measures that hurt the fast-growing cloud sector.
"The risk is that a country like Germany will say you have to be a German company to provide data services in Germany," Castro said.
"I don't think that helps anyone. We do benefit from free trade and the robust competitiveness in the tech industry."
The report notes that the United States dominates the cloud computing market both domestically and abroad, and that U.S. firms could lose between 10% and 20% of the foreign market in the next few years.
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