The protectionist policies can also have a spillover effect, both to other nations that might seek to prop up their own domestic companies in retaliation, and to other industries. Dorothy Dwoskin, Microsoft's senior director of trade policy and strategy, pointed out that the tech sector contributes a tremendous network effect that benefits all other industries that rely on IT services, both at home and abroad.

"We are enablers for the rest of the economy and the global economy," Dwoskin said. "It really is all-encompassing."

in CIO's Cloud Computing Drilldown.