Notes

Antitrust and the Data Economy:

• Framing the data economy in the EU dimension. (The EU is pursuing a strategy to improve a data economy within the member states).
• Data and Market Power.
• Anticompetitive behaviors within the data economy (abuse and data, mergers in the data market, anticompetitive agreements and data).
• Data access (can competition law make data access compulsory?) / open data.

Now, the Data Economy Dimension Data is not a new phenomenon Since ancient times, the observations of human beings and the recordings of such observations have been named DATA.

The "New" Phenomenon is DIGITAL DATA Digital data are nothing other than data encoded in binary code, that is, in strings of 1s and 0s. Digital Data is what enables data powered technologies to work!

Huge Amount of Data!

• "Big data are high-volume, high-velocity and high-variety information assets that demand cost-effective, innovative forms of information processing for enhanced insight and decision making" (Gartner IT Glossary, n.d.)
• "Big data is a term that describes large volumes of high velocity, complex and variable data that require advanced techniques and technologies to enable the capture, storage, distribution, management, and analysis of the information". (TechAmerica Foundation's Federal Big Data Commission, 2012).

Size is only one dimension of big data. Other dimensions, such as velocity and variety are equally important. The amount of data just beyond technology's capability to store, manage, and process efficiently." Big data is a term utilized to refer to the increase in the volume of data that are difficult to store, process, and analyze through traditional database technologies. The nature of big data is indistinct and involves considerable processes to identify and translate the data into new insights. The term "big data" is relatively new in IT and business.

Big Data Tracking, collecting, storage and analysis of large quantities of different types of data, produced at high speed from multiple sources, whose handling and analysis require new and more powerful processors and algorithms. Big Data are frequently described by using four "Vs":

• Volume, the huge size of the data determines their value and potential.
• Velocity, the data are generated and processed to meet the demands and the challenges that lie in the path of growth and development at a very high speed.
• Variety, many types of content + potential inconsistencies that the data can show at times.
• Veracity, the quality of captured data, which can vary greatly. Accurate analysis depends on the veracity of source data. Veracity is crucial also for political and social reasons.

Relevance of Big Data

• (New) source of high economic and social value.
• Big data is relevant for the goal they pursue, that is, the production of information...
• Pieces of information that, once further elaborated via diverse techniques, can lead to the production of new products and processes...
• The last two points describe the Data-Driven Innovation.

Data-Driven Innovation Have a bigger data "reservoir" available for economic actors. Have more data available to foster data-based innovations.

Data Economy is a global digital ecosystem in which data is gathered, organized, and exchanged by a network of stakeholders for the purpose of deriving value from the accumulated information.

In 2016, Data Economy was mainly referring to the ability of enterprises to leverage big data and analytics as a corporate asset to make strategic business decisions, improve operational efficiencies and drive revenue growth as well as create new and innovative business models. Nowadays, it more of a digital ecosystem.

Do you think the EU has/is a leading Data Economy? Not the biggest in the world, probably the most regulated.

Why is the Data Economy so important? The legal solutions are considered as a key-element to make the Data Economy evolve. The harmonization of rules and legal standards is required to reach a smoother and uniform market within the EU.

The Data economy within the EU Digital Single Market Strategy

• Building a European Data Economy is a priority for EU and it is part of the Digital Single Market Strategy.
• The DSM strategy through its three pillars touches upon all areas of laws, for the achievement of a digital space where goods, capital, people, data can freely move and everyone can access more or less everything at any moment from anywhere.

The DSM strategy is articulated in three pillars:

• Access refers to the need of ensuring "Better access for consumers and business to online goods", in other words establishing trust towards cross-border e-commerce.
• Environment refers to the need of creating the "Right environment for digital networks and services", in other words having networks and digital services to flourish thank to a level playing field environment.
• Economy and Society refers to the need of taking "full advantages of the digital economy in terms of growth and societal development".

How to build a Data Economy? To build the data economy, the EU needs a policy framework that enables data to be used throughout the value chain for scientific, societal and industrial purposes. (EU Commission Communication on building a European Data Economy, January 2017).

Building a European Data Economy (January 2017) Possible policy and legal solutions for a data economy in relation to:

• Free Flow of Data
  • Objective: Removing data localization restrictions except if they are required for national security and similar objectives.
  • Free Flow of (non-personal) data: New Regulation (EU) 2018/1807 which removes obstacles to the free movement of non-personal data.
• It ensures free movement of non-personal data across borders.
• It establishes the same principle of free movement within the Union (27 member states) for non-personal data.
• Only exception: restriction or prohibition justified by public security reasons.
• GDPR
  • Bans restriction to the free flow of personal data justified on the abuse of the protection of personal data.
  • Allows restrictions to the free flow of personal data that are based on other reasons other than personal data protection (public safety).
• "Emerging issues", for example relating to data: access, portability and liability.

The EU needs a policy framework that enables data to be used (...) A framework including, an increase of:

• Flow of Data (Regulation 2018/1807 + GDPR)
• Data Access and Transfer (guidance on data sharing, debate on data ownership).
• Data interoperability (improving tech interoperability, recommended contract terms to facilitate switching).