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Internet was once a niche thing for people who cared about decentralisation and interoperability. Otherwise we would be in "I can't get to HN, it's on the AT&T network" or "Only $5 more to upgrade to the Tech Websites Package!" territory today.
There's no reason social media shouldn't be more decentralized and federated. European institutes can and should consider open source, federated alternatives unless they want to be forced to play by the rules of the big social media providers.