Share-PSI 2.0 Best Practice Create Business Accelerators to Encourage PSI Re-Use

Outline

The establishment of an active open data network, an eco-system to facilitate the uptake of data and information for re-use.

Management summary

Organizations are taking giant steps towards freeing up public data with the aim of making it available for everyone to access this data and information, for personal as well as for business use. The uptake of this data and information was not what was expected. Simply making data available to the public isn’t enough to make that data useful. Citizens are not interested in data, they are interested in services being built with the available data and information. More needs therefore to be done.

Challenge

The open data landscape exists of different actors/users with different needs, challenges, problems, expectations, roles and envisaged opportunities. A strategy, coordinating the efforts, wants, needs, challenges etc.. of all those internal and external actors, stakeholders and interested parties, is needed. Only then can they be convinced to share data and information and make those available for re-use. Only then shall all involved know what can/must be available in order to realize innovation efforts and new products and services mentioned in the PSI directive.

Solution

An active network is needed, an "open data ecosytem", facilitating interaction and communication amongst everybody interested and/or involved in open data and the re-use of information and data, internal, as well as external to the organisation. Within such a regional, national and international eco-system, information exchange such as success stories will increase visibility and therefore awareness with regards to the availability of data and information for re-use and the results achieved by doing so. Small infomediary companies could act as intermediaries between all involved parties and with other market segments. Examples can be found in Spain where over 80% of infomediary companies are older than 5 years old and generates approximately 4,500 to 5,500 jobs, mostly linked to ICT: analysis, processing and presentation of information.

Best Practice identification

Why is this a Best Practice? What’s the impact of the Best Practice

Most open data initiatives in most EU member states have focused on making sure everything is in place on the supply side of opening up their data and information. All member states stated that it is not sufficient to just make the data open, i.e. simply making data available to the public isn’t enough to make that data useful. All agree that focusing on bringing about the necessary strategic, legal and technical aspects with regards to the implementation of open data isn’t enough. Open data requires an approach based on the administration releasing it, the kind of data being released and, perhaps most importantly, its targeted audience. Interaction, communication, contacts with journalists, raising awareness, training, collaboration, discussions etc.. is needed to foster the development of new innovative products and services, thereby helping to realise the goals of the PSI Directive such as stimulating economic and business activity and ultimately providing value for society as a whole. Initiating an open and constructive dialog could be the beginning of an open data ecosystem, giving rise to sustainable business models of solutions making use of Public Sector Information, hopefully in combination with data and information from the private sector. Mostly forgotten, but not less important; the best practice will also achieve efficiency gains through sharing data inside and between public administration, fostering participation of citizens in political and social life and increasing transparency of government.

Links to the PSI Directive

• Organisational structures and skills
• Policies and legislation (legal requirements, licenses etc..) / Licensing of information/data and metadata
• Open Data platform(s) / Publication and deployment of information/data and metadata
• Dataset criteria and priorities and value and scope w.r.t. datasets
• Organisational structures and skills
• Charging issues and proposals
• Encouraging (commercial) re-use
• Selection of information/data to be published according to various criteria
• Data discoverability.

Why is there a need for this Best Practice?

• To get the most out of scarce public resources that are available in our member states
• To increase re-se, by the private and also by the public sector
• To focus the government agencies efforts on offering the relevant information
• To improve available datasets formats, the information quality and its accessibility
• To promote better national regulations on PSI
• To enhance co-ordination between public and private sector in PSI re-use
• To bring about real added value to the development of open data in the member states and help communities to enter the open data movement or improve on it
• To use what already exists
• To make use of best practices realised in other member states
• To realise speed, scale of economy, cooperation

What do you need for this Best Practice?

If member states want to adopt this Best Practice they will have to:

• Make sure everything is in place to facilitate the implementation of open data (strategy, content, legal and technical);
• Be willing to adopt a bottom-up approach to implement an open data program;
• Bring about an open data ecosystem by listening to all stakeholders and interested parties;
• Dedicate the necessary people and resources in realising this ecosystem;
• Be willing to share data inside and between public administrations;
• Establish the necessary follow-up procedures towards continuity.

Applicability to other Member States

Directly applicable to any EU member state.

Contact info

• José Luis Roda-García – Director of the Canaries´ Open Data Platform – University of La Laguna in Tenerife, Spain - www.opendatacanarias.es – info@opendatacanarias.es -- jlroda@ull.edu.es
• Pedro González-Yanes – Co-director of the Canaries´ Open Data Platform – University of La Laguna in Tenerife, Spain - www.opendatacanarias.es – info@opendatacanarias.es -- jlroda@ull.edu.es
• Julia Hoxha – Albanian Institute of Science, Tirana, Albania.
• Aranita Brahaj – Albanian Institute of Science, Tirana, Albania.
• Benedikt Kämpgen – Institute AIFB, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
• soporte@datos.gob.es
• Noël Van Herreweghe – Program Manager Open Data – Government of Flanders in Belgium - http://www.opendataforum.be - noel.vanherreweghe@bz.vlaanderen.be
• Toon Vanagt –Internet entrepreneur & technology consultant/coach – Data.be - http://www.data.be – toon@data.be