Towards trusted data sharing: guidance and case studies
Data sharing checklist
4. Develop the model for data sharing and the partnership
- What will the model for data sharing be? For example, the model might involve data pooling between organisations, or a trusted intermediary, or the creation of an ecosystem with numerous roles, providing access to third parties.
- Are there existing trusted relationships and practices upon which data sharing can build?
- What is the nature of the partnership? Are partners from the public or private sector, or is there a mix? What are the various roles and responsibilities of participants? Where do intellectual property rights lie?
- What are the incentives for individual stakeholders to participate? Where the success of the data sharing model requires many participants, how can the ecosystem of participants be developed?
Learning from the case studies:
Companies that recognise the longer-term strategic value of having access to data are willing to put resources into making the data available. Organisations may be incentivised to share data where they envisage new business models that are characterised by interdisciplinary, cross-domain approaches, as illustrated in the Industrial Data Space project, which has broad industry participation across a range of sectors.
The presence of an intermediary that has a robust business model and strong governance arrangements may ease data sharing, such as oneTRANSPORT. It can allow an ecosystem of data sharing to emerge, with many different roles: for example, owner of a central data hub or ‘data custodian’, technology provider, application developer, data provider, data broker or aggregator, data services provider, or data recipient, as illustrated by the Industrial Data Space project.
Where an intermediary’s success depends on stakeholder participation, there may be certain factors that encourage the ecosystem to emerge. Each participant has their own idea of a business model, but they are all relying on each other for it to work.
Promoting flexibility may incentivise data providers to make data available via an intermediary, for example through short-term licence agreements, open or international standards and allowing data portability, such as in the oneTRANSPORT project. Organisations may also be more willing to share data where the rules of participating encourage reciprocity.
Early use cases and pilots can demonstrate to potential partners the value of participating.