global perspectives Big data is no longer a new phenomenon in Europe, we are familiar with it and the challenges it continues to pose. Big data are information assets so complex that they require new forms of processing, but offer such new opportunities that they may enable enhanced decision making, insight discovery and process optimization. I like the three dimensions of big data published in 2012 in a report by Gartner: high volume, high velocity, and high variety. However, there is a new dimension at play now: veracity. The latest stage of the ICT revolution in Europe is not just big data, but big and open data. ‘Open data’ refers to free access of predominantly government data to the public, unless this would violate privacy, confidentiality or security. Big and open data is also about veracity because it refers to the quality of conforming to facts, and being accurate. Overall, increased access to and transparency into public sector created and collected data can spur innovation and provide greater insights across industries, as well as increase accountability of public sector bodies. Leveraging big and open data just might be a new measure of progress in our society. Availability of public sector data, as well as transparency of public sector, has been discussed in the European Union and in the Czech Republic for some time now. In Czech Republic, what started as a localized political debate on what should and should not be open data, became a discussion across the board. Although the Czech public sector bodies currently provide various datasets to the general population, they are often not fully accessible because they are difficult to find and they might not be in standardized data formats. Therefore, attempts to reuse these datasets in useful and insightful applications may require significant effort or might even be impossible. Big data might not be a totally new phenomenon but it still poses challenges. The high volume of a high variety of data generating at high velocity cannot be administered by traditional ICT (information and communications technology) tools. Moore’s Law has often been employed to predict and determine the development of new technology and it can be employed to provide some insight into big data. Room size computers for governments and corporations evolved into small gadgets for consumers in only four decades. As the performance of devices doubled every year, they also generated twice as much data than each device before it – and big data was born. Added to the challenge is open data, now demanded by citizens. Big and open data can help the public sector become more transparent and accountable, if countries will leverage their benefits. Many countries are working through the challenges of big and open data and many have moved in the same direction to provide open data to the public. In Europe, many countries have gone as far as the United States of America
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in making public data available. The rest of the Member States are also falling in line, including Czech Republic. However, it will take time for government agencies to make an inventory of their data and priorities their release. They must also take steps not to release information that, though safe on its own, could be joined with other data and cause issues of confidentiality– yet another challenge. The right balance must be struck between restricting access to data for privacy, confidentiality and security reasons, and releasing all public-sector data. Since I am an optimist, I would argue that despite these challenges, big and open data will provide great potential for progress. There is an exciting opportunity for innovation from public sector into the private one. Big and open data can inject fresh insight into any business, small or large, across industries. And with innovation, comes value. According to the Warsaw Institute for Economic Studies, in their report Big and open data in Europe: A growth engine or a missed opportunity?, the economic gains of big and open data policies on EU-28 by year 2020, is estimated at €206 billion in GPD. This is a 1.9% growth in GDP generated solely from data-driven solutions. According to the same report, GDP growth will make an impact across sectors and industries, if data-driven solutions are introduced. The report predicts trade as the big winner with a 23% growth in GDP across EU-28 by 2020, followed closely by manufacturing at 22% growth. Czech Republic, due to its mature manufacturing sector that is well integrated into international supply chains, can therefore expect substantial gains. The reports also mentions finance & insurance as well as public administration to grow by 13%. This growth broadly encompassing sectors and industries highlights increased productivity, improved competition and allocation of production across the board. Indeed, small businesses from any industry can leverage big and open data, as well as technology, and make it its competitive advantage. Just think of America’s military satellitenavigation system, GPS (Global Positioning System) – government held data and technology made available to the world by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. Entrepreneurs went on a frenzy of innovation: car-navigation, cellular telephony, meteorology, precision farming and the list goes on. And even if GPS innovation may not be at the center of a business, official weather data is used by everyone from traders to hot dogs sellers. Similarly, I predict that open data is the new big bang of the private sector, and will send entrepreneurs on another frenzy of innovation. I would argue that most entrepreneurs will eventually use at least some public-sector information in their business. However, to leverage the breakthroughs that open data will allow, we must work through its challenges at the policy level within the European Union. Firstly, the nature of the big and open data revolution must be understood and public data must be organized and prioritized by each
Member State. It is very important that the right framework is put in place based on protecting privacy, confidentiality and security. Keeping in mind that public data belongs to the public, the right to privacy for example must be respected. In the future, the harmonisation of privacy laws can strengthen the single digital market and empower individuals to choose the data they wish to remain private–this will provide the private sector with the opportunity to look for value in data acquired under clearly established rules. Secondly, the benefits of big and open data rely on a range of enabling technologies – which allow for the collection, transmission, storage, processing and analysis of data. Member States must incorporate broader and interoperable ICT solutions such as cloud computing in their process. Furthermore, it is not just up to the national government to lead by example but regional and local government bodies must also invest. For example, the public transport agency Transport for Greater Manchester, United Kingdom, is leveraging the potential economic and societal benefits of big and open data. The transport agency has deployed an open data cloud-based platform that helps travellers better plan, manage, and enjoy their journey. The platform uses Windows Azure to store all of the city’s regional transport records. Due to open access to this data, over 100 third-party developers and entrepreneurs have created mobile apps with useful travelling information provided in real-time – such as parking or metro shuttle locations, and journey times. Thirdly, and a subject very close to my heart, is ensuring that there is a continued push to cultivate a robust talent pipeline of professionals with strong STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education. At the national level, Member States must continue to invest in education because our upcoming computer scientists, data analysts and engineers will be the ones working through the big and open data challenges. Business intelligence or analytics can be used to sort through and analyze information, but big and open data require more sophisticated tools and frameworks. Therefore, increased investment in STEM education across Europe will ensure we have sophisticated data scientists that can transfer the benefits of big and open data across industries. Data has no impact without context, so the brightest analysts will be needed to propose and implement databased solutions. The big data revolution is already on its way, and now with open data, transparency will be the new enabler of innovation. Big and open data is coming of age and will grow exponentially. I look forward to seeing entrepreneurs in Europe take charge and invent solutions that will dwarf what GPS has achieved over more than 30 years. By Jan Mühlfeit Chairman Microsoft Europe ■ český překlad naleznete v elektronické verzi magazínu na www.leadersmagazine.cz
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