What European Cluster Collaboration Platform does

The European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) is an initiative of the European Commission, established in 2015 and administered by EISMEA (the European Innovation Council and SME Executive Agency) under the EU programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs (COSME). Headquartered in Brussels with 1-10 employees listed, ECCP operates a Drupal-based web portal hosted on European Commission infrastructure that connects more than 50,000 European experts, businesses, and policymakers and provides a directory and interactive map of over 1,500 cluster organisations across 14 industrial ecosystems including Agri-food, Mobility-Transport-Automotive, Renewable Energy, Digital, and Health.

The platform's product surface is organised around eight service modules: ECCP Matchmaking Events, Clusters Meet Regions workshops, weekly EU Clusters Talks webinars, Cluster Collaboration Labs (C2Labs), a monthly newsletter, a funding opportunities finder, a searchable Clusters Directory, and a Clusters Map. International matchmaking is delivered through physical missions in third-country markets, with recent and upcoming events in the Gulf region, India (New Delhi, October 2026), Canada (Montreal, September 2026), and continued support for Ukraine. Operational delivery is outsourced to four contracted service providers: EY Economic and Policy Advisory Services, Deloitte Consulting, Low Associates, and Technopolis Consulting Group Belgium.

ECCP is not a commercial enterprise. Services are provided free of charge to users; the platform generates no product revenue and is funded entirely through the COSME programme, with EISMEA serving as data controller and DG GROW providing policy oversight. The go-to-market motion is event-driven and community-led, relying on self-service registration, the cluster directory, social channels (LinkedIn, Facebook, X), and the monthly newsletter to drive engagement.

Name

European Cluster Collaboration Platform

Legal name

European Cluster Collaboration Platform

Website

https://clustercollaboration.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ECCP is a European Commission-funded platform under the COSME programme that connects more than 50,000 European experts and 1,500+ cluster organisations across 14 industrial ecosystems through matchmaking events, a directory, webinars, and a funding database, administered by EISMEA and operated free of charge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Berchem

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. EU Commission Funding: The ECCP is an initiative of the European Commission funded by the EU programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs (COSME). The platform provides free services to clusters and SMEs as a public sector initiative.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) is a free, web-based hub operated by the European Commission that connects more than 1,500 cluster organisations, SMEs, and policymakers across 14 industrial ecosystems. It delivers matchmaking events, a searchable clusters directory and interactive map, an EU funding opportunities database, weekly EU Clusters Talks webinars, Clusters Meet Regions workshops, and Cluster Collaboration Labs (C2Labs) for project roadmapping, supported by a monthly newsletter reaching 50,000+ European experts.

Product overview

The European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) is a web-based platform that connects European clusters, businesses, and policymakers. It offers a unified platform with multiple integrated service modules: a matchmaking events service for international partnerships, Clusters meet Regions workshops for regional ecosystem strengthening, EU Clusters Talks for knowledge exchange, Cluster Collaboration Labs (C2Labs) for project roadmap development, a monthly newsletter, funding opportunities finder, and a searchable directory/map of over 1,500 cluster organisations across 14 industrial ecosystems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ECCP Matchmaking Events Organised international matchmaking events connecting European clusters, SMEs, and policymakers with partners in third countries, using an online registration system (b2match). Aimed at cluster organisations and SMEs seeking cross-border partnerships.
• Clusters Meet Regions Collaborative workshops bringing clusters and policymakers together to strengthen regional industrial ecosystems, with expressions of interest open to hosts.
• EU Clusters Talks Weekly webinar series providing a forum for European cluster organisations, businesses, and policymakers to exchange knowledge on EU business-community topics.
• Cluster Collaboration Labs (C2Labs) Facilitated lab sessions where cluster partners meet, team up within or across regions/countries, and define project roadmaps for collaborative initiatives.
• ECCP Newsletter Monthly newsletter delivered to registered users providing updates on cluster-development trends, insights, and opportunities.
• Funding Opportunities Database Searchable database of EU funding programmes, grants, and tender opportunities provided by the European Union, the Euroclusters, and the ECCP community. Aimed at clusters and SMEs seeking financial support.
• Clusters Directory and Map Searchable directory and interactive map of more than 1,500 cluster organisations, filterable by focus sector, industrial ecosystem, and country. Lets users identify cluster members, meta-clusters, national associations, Euroclusters, training providers, resource-efficiency providers, and public institutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 141 matchmaking meetings facilitated at Gulf region event
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Enterprise Europe Network (EEN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEEN is a large support network for SMEs with international ambitions. ECCP collaborates with EEN on events such as the Partnerships for Horizon Europe Smart Communities projects, bringing together companies, research centres, universities, and other entities for project proposals and consortium building.
• EuroclusterscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuroclusters are cross-sectoral, interdisciplinary and trans-European strategic initiatives aiming to strengthen Europe's resilience by connecting actors across countries, sectors and industrial ecosystems. ECCP promotes Eurocluster activities and open calls for funding.
• European Commission DG GROWflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ECCP is an initiative of the European Commission funded by the COSME programme. DG GROW (Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs) oversees the platform's strategic direction and policy alignment.
• EISMEAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe European Innovation Council and SME Executive Agency (EISMEA) is the data controller for ECCP processing operations. Head of Unit I.02 (SMP/SME Pillar) manages the platform contract and operations.
• EY Economic and Policy Advisory Services SRLcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEY is one of the service providers managing the ECCP website and related databases, responsible for site management and technical operations.
• Deloitte Consulting & Advisory BVcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDeloitte provides consulting services for the ECCP programme, including dissemination activities and programme support.
• Low Associates SRLcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLow Associates supports ECCP communications and dissemination activities from their Brussels office.
• Technopolis Consulting Group BelgiumcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerTechnopolis Consulting Group provides policy advisory services for the ECCP programme, supporting cluster policy development and stakeholder engagement.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): EEN is the world's largest support network for SMEs with international ambitions, funded by the European Commission. It directly overlaps with ECCP in providing SME internationalisation services, matchmaking, and EU funding guidance, and is an explicit collaboration partner of ECCP.
• ERRIN (European Regions Research and Innovation Network): ERRIN is a Brussels-based membership network of more than 120 regional research and innovation stakeholders across Europe. It supports regional authorities in shaping EU R&I policy and connects cluster-like actors, with a comparable member-serving, EU-aligned governance model.
• EURADA (European Association of Development Agencies): EURADA is a membership network of regional and local development agencies across Europe focused on economic development, business support, and EU funding access. It is comparable to ECCP in serving regional development organisations and facilitating EU programme engagement.
• European Business and Innovation Centre Network (EBN): EBN is a pan-European network of innovation hubs and business innovation centres supporting startups, SMEs, and innovation actors. It operates a similar community-driven model to ECCP, connecting members across regions and serving as a broker for EU innovation programmes.
• Euroclusters: Euroclusters are cross-sectoral, trans-European strategic initiatives under the EU Single Market Programme connecting cluster actors across countries and industrial ecosystems. ECCP directly promotes and operationalises Eurocluster activities, making them tightly coupled peers.

Broad incumbents

• CORDIS (Community Research and Development Information Service): CORDIS is the European Commission's primary public repository for EU-funded research projects, partners, and funding opportunities. Comparable to ECCP in providing searchable EU funding intelligence and partner discovery, but scoped to research projects rather than cluster organisations.
• European Innovation Council (EIC): The EIC is the European Commission's flagship innovation funding programme for breakthrough, deep-tech, and scaling startups, managed by EISMEA (the same agency overseeing ECCP). It is a broader incumbent serving a related but higher-end audience (venture-stage innovators) within the same EU innovation ecosystem.
• European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT): EIT is an EU body strengthening Europe's innovation capacity through Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) across climate, digital, health, energy, manufacturing, and more. It is a broader EU-level incumbent whose thematic communities overlap with several of ECCP's 14 industrial ecosystems.

Emerging players

• TCI Network: TCI Network is a global association of practitioners, organisations, governments, and academics focused on clusters, competitiveness, and innovation. Comparable to ECCP in its cluster-community focus and event-driven model, but global in scope and member-funded rather than EU-funded.

Regional players

• Innovate UK EDGE: Innovate UK EDGE is a UK national business growth and innovation support service connecting ambitious businesses to funding, partners, and international opportunities. It mirrors ECCP's SME-internationalisation value proposition but is a UK-focused, national-scale operator rather than a pan-European platform.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Clusters_EU
• Facebookfacebook.com/EuropeanClusterCollaborationPlatform
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/european-cluster-collaboration-platform-eccp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about European Cluster Collaboration Platform