topic report: open data and liability

7/29/2019 Topic Report: Open Data and Liability

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EuropeanPublicSectorInformationPlatform

TopicReportNo.2012/13

OpenDataand

Liability

Keywords

PSI,PublicSectorInformation,OpenData,liability,damages,access,secrecy,personaldata,

tortlaw,unfaircompetition,intellectualpropertyrights,copyrights,databaserights,

licences

Author:MarcdeVries(LegalExpertePSIPlatform20112013)

Published:December2012


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Copyrightinformation

2012EuropeanPSIPlatform.Thisdocumentandallmaterialthereinhavebeencompiledwithgreatcare.

However,theauthor,editorand/orpublisherand/oranypartywithintheEuropeanPSIPlatformorits

predecessorprojectstheePSIplusNetworkprojectorePSINetconsortiumcannotbeheldliableinanywayfor

theconsequencesofusingthecontentofthisdocumentand/oranymaterialreferencedtherein.Thisreport

hasbeenpublishedundertheauspicesoftheEuropeanPublicSectorInformationPlatform.


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ThereportmaybereproducedprovidingacknowledgementismadetotheEuropeanPublicSectorInformation

(PSI)Platform.TheEuropeanPublicSectorInformation(PSI)PlatformisfundedundertheEuropean

CommissioneContentplusprogramme.

TABLEOFCONTENTS

TABLEOFCONTENTS........................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................4

1 LIABILITYRELATEDTOTHIRD-PARTYRIGHTS...........................................................5

1.1 Preventionofaccess.............................................................................................................5

1.2 Infringementofcopyrightsanddatabaserights....................................................................6

1.3 Addressingtheliabilityrisks.................................................................................................. 7

2 LIABILITYRELATEDTOINCORRECTDATA...............................................................10

2.1 Nore-useconditions...........................................................................................................10

2.2 Re-useundercontractualrelations.....................................................................................11

2.3 Addressingtheliabilityrisks................................................................................................12

3 LIABILITYFORUNFAIRCOMPETITION....................................................................13

3.1 Interestsofincumbentmarketparties................................................................................13

3.2 Addressingtheliabilityrisks................................................................................................15

4 FINALOBSERVATIONS............................................................................................16

ABOUTTHEAUTHOR......................................................................................................17


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ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|Introduction 4

INTRODUCTION

OpenDatamomentumbuildingup

Overthelastyears,thequietlittlestreamcalledPublicSectorInformation(PSI)hasgradually

turnedintoawhite-watermountainriver,changingitsshortnametoOpenDataonthefly.Policy

makersthroughoutEurope,capturedbytheOpenDatavirussparkedbytheomnipresentOpenData

community,havestartedtorealizethesocio-economicpotentialofre-useofOpenDataandarein

theprocessofturningthisintoconcretepolicymeasuresbothattheEuropeanandnationallevels.

LiabilityasanOpenDatashowstopper

However,quiteoften,theambitionsofpublicsectorbodies(PSBs)holdingOpenDataarebogged

downby(perceived)lurkingrisksofliability.(Lawyerswithin)PSBstendtowarnofrisksthatmay

occurwhendataareopenedup,arguingthat(a)thedatamaynotbepublicor(b)itmaybeincorrect

or(c)freeusemaycreateunfaircompetition.Inthistopicreportwewilllookattheseperceived

risks,assesstherealrisksandcomeupwithpracticalsuggestionsonhowtoovercomethem,thus

allowingPSBstosurmountthisobstacle.

Obviously,nationallegalframeworksonliabilitydifferperMemberState.However,thecharacterof

thelegalriskspertainingtoopeningupPSIisthesame,allowingforahorizontalapproach

throughoutEurope.

Thestartingpoint

ImagineaPSBthathasanextensiveandrichrepositoryofPSIthatcouldwellbere-usedandthatis

wildlyenergizedbytheconceptoffreeOpenData.Now,alsoimaginethedirectorgeneralofthisPSB

checkingwithin-houselegalcounselwhetheropeningupofitsdatacouldgettheorganisationinto

trouble.Putdifferently:thestartingpointisaPSB,richinvaluablePSI,thatisquitewillingtoopenup

itsdataforfreere-use;notaPSBthatisdependentonincomesfromchargingforPSIandfromits

owndownstreamre-useactivities,relyingonintellectualpropertyrights(IPRs)topreserveits

position(soaccess=re-use).

Threepotentialrisks

Whenfocusingonthelegalliabilitiesthereareessentiallythreepotentialrisks:

a. thedataareopenedupforre-useandthemerefactofallowingre-useinfringesthird-partyrights

b. theopeningupofdatadoesnotinfringethird-partyrights(sonothingwrongwiththat)butthecontentisincorrectandre-usersrelyingonitincurdamages

c. noinfringementofthird-partyrightsornoincorrectdata,butthefreeprovisionofdataaffectsthepositionofexistingmarketpartiessupplyingcomparabledata,leadingto

damages

Structureofthistopicreport

Accordingly,chapter1looksintothird-partyrightsliabilityrisks,chapter2examinesincorrect

contentliabilityrisksandchapter3addressesunfaircompetitionliabilityrisks.Doingso,each

chapterdescribesthelegalbasesofthepotentialrisksandmakesanassessmentofhowbigthese

risksareandtowhatextenttheycouldleadtoactualliabilityforthePSBopeningupitsdata.

Furthermore,thereportsuggestssolutionsandpracticaltoolsforaddressingtheserisks,supported

bysomeeasy-to-graspillustrations.

Thisdocumentwasfinalisedon12December2012.

MarcdeVriesLegalexpertOpenDataandMemberePSIPlatform20112013


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ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|Liabilityrelatedtothird-partyrights 5

1 LIABILITYRELATEDTOTHIRD-PARTYRIGHTSThefirstpotentialriskrelatestothesituationwhereinathirdpartyhasarightconnectedtothedata

openedup.Hereweshoulddistinguishbetweenpubliclawrulesrelatedtothepreventionofaccess

andprivatelawrulesthatdisallowPSBstopublishandcopythedata.

1.1 PreventionofaccessThelegislationofalltheEuropeanMemberStatesholdsrulesonaccesstoandsecrecyofPSI.Inmost

casesthereisageneralFreedomofInformationAct(FOIA)allowingaccesstoPSIasarule,but

holdingexemptionsandlimitationsforcertaintypesofPSIandspecificrulesforcertainsectors.

Jointly,theseconstitutetheaccessregime.

Typically,thecatalogueofexemptions(eitherfromtheFOIAorthesectoralrules)relatetointerests

thatareconsideredofgreaterimportancethanthe(general)interestofopenness.Classicexamples

areinterestsoftheState(e.g.safety,publichealth,prosecution),interestsofcompanies(e.g.

companysecretsprovidedconfidentiallytotheauthorities(forinstanceintheframeworkofqualifyingforasubsidyscheme))orinterestsofindividuals,mostnotably,privacyanddata

protection.Obviously,thelattertwo,andinparticulartheprivacyinterests,blockasubstantial

amountofdatafromaccess(letalonere-use).

Dataprotection

PrivacyprotectionisanimportantelementinensuringthecredibilityandviabilityofPSIre-use.

Publicsectorinformationcaninvolvedatathatpermitstheidentificationofspecificpersons,thus

impactingtheirpersonallives.AspecificdirectivehasbeenadoptedintheEuropeanUnion(theso-

calledDataProtectionDirective),whichaimstoprotecttherighttoprivacywithrespecttoan

individualspersonaldata.Itdoessobyestablishingacommonsetofrulesthatmustbeobserved

whenprocessingpersonaldata.

BirdseyeviewofdataprotectionlawandPSIre-uselaw

TheDataProtectionDirectivedefinespersonaldataasanyinformationrelatingtoanidentifiedor

identifiablenaturalperson.Thisincludesnotonlydirectreferencestoapersonsuchasthepersons

fullname,addressoranyidentificationnumbers,butcanalsoincludelessdirectinformationsuchas

photos or informationon living conditions. Theconceptof personaldata is thus quite broad.As a

result,PSIcaneasilyincludepersonaldata.

ThePSIDirectiveemphasizesthatitsprovisionsshouldbeimplementedandappliedinfullcompliance

withtheprinciplesofthe Data ProtectionDirective (recital 21)and that thePSI Directivedoesnot

affectthelevelofprotectionofindividualswithregardtotheprocessingofpersonaldata(article1(4)

ofthePSIDirective).Asaresult,anyPSIinitiativeinwhichpersonaldataisprocessedwillalsoneedto

complywiththerulesoftheDataProtectionDirective.

TheDataProtectionDirectiveoperatesonthebasisofanumberofmajorprinciples,most

prominently:

- Legitimacy:personaldatamayonlybeprocessedwhenthereisaclearlawfulbasisforthis(e.g.ifalawpermitsthere-useoftraderegisterinformationtoensuretransparencyandaccessibility,then

re-useisclearlylegitimate).

- Purpose:personaldatamustbecollectedforspecified,explicitandlegitimatepurposesandshouldnotbeprocessedinawayincompatiblewiththosepurposes(e.g.medicaltreatmentinformation

fromahospitalmaynotbemadeavailabletoinsurancecompanies).

- Proportionality:personaldatamustbeadequate,relevantandnotexcessiveinrelationtothepurposesforwhichtheyarecollectedand/orfurtherprocessed(e.g.whencreatingcrimemaps,it

isexcessivetomentiontheexactaddresswhereacrimetookplace).


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- Quality:theaccuracyofthepersonaldatamustbeprotectedtoareasonableextent(e.g.ifaPSBmakesgeographicdataavailableforre-usewithoutguaranteesofaccuracy,itshouldprovide

mechanismstoreportanyerrors).

- Security:personaldatamustbereasonablyprotectedagainstunlawfulprocessing,suchasaccidentalorunlawfuldestruction,corruptionorlossofthedata(e.g.whentraderegister

informationislicensedforre-usebutnotmadegenerallyavailabletothepublic,thenre-users

shouldberequiredtoimplementsecuritymeasurestopreventdataloss).- Individualrights:peopleshouldbeinformedonthere-use,anditshouldbepossibleforthemtoaccessthedataandtohaveitcorrectedorremovedifneeded(e.g.ifPSIincludespicturestakenin

public,citizensaccidentallyphotographedshouldbeabletoobject).

- Protectionofspecialcategoriesofdata:thisincludesracialorethnicorigin,politicalopinions,religiousbeliefs,andhealthorsexlife(e.g.ifcitizenregisterdatathatalsospecifiesreligionis

madeavailableforre-use,informationonreligionshouldberemovedunlessthelawpermitsthis).1

Fromaliabilityperspective,itisimportanttoemphasizethatwherepersonaldataarepublicly

available,forinstance,throughbusinessregisters,dataprotectionrulesstilldisallowre-usersto

processthesedata,astheprincipleofpurpose(seetextboxabove)onlyallowsuseofthesedata

forthespecificaimandwithinthespecificcontextforwhichthepersonaldatawerecollected.

Putdifferently,asarule,whenOpenDataholdpersonaldatainparticularwithinthecontextof

largedigitaldatasetstheyaretoberemovedoranonymized.Otherwise,theentiredatasetis

poisoned(atleastfromare-useperspective)andaPSBallowingaccessto,andobviouslyalsore-use

of,thatdatasetinfringesdataprotectionrules.

Sanctions

Whatif,inspiteofthepresenceofpersonaldata,aPSBhasallowedre-useofthesedata?Herewe

havetomakeadistinctionbetweenthecivilliabilitytowardsthepersonswhoseprivacyrightshave

beenaffectedandthepublicliabilityofthePSBtowardsthenationaldataprotectionauthority.

Civillawliability

InmostMemberStatesthefinancialrisksforinfringementofprivacyofpersonsislimited.Obviously,

thepersonsconcernedcanrequestanimmediateceaseanddesistorder,andthemerefactthatthe

ruleshavenotbeenobservedconstitutestheliability.Butquiteoftenthefinancialdamagewillbe

minimalorevennon-existentandasthisisthejudgesbasisforassessinganddeterminingthe

compensation,itisunlikelythataPSBwillbeheldliabletopaylargeamountsinsuchanevent.

Publiclawliability

Shouldtheinfringementhaveamassiveimpact,itwilllikelyattracttheattentionofthenationaldata

protectionauthority.AlthoughdifferingfromMemberStatetoMemberState,asarulethese

authoritiescanimposesanctions,includingfinesandpenaltiesfornon-compliance.Obviously,within

inter-governmentalrelationsandassumingthattheinfringementwasunintended,itishighlyunlikely

thattheauthoritywouldimposefinancialsanctionsonaPSB.Thisbeingsaid,ofcoursethepolitical

damagefortheministerresponsiblemaybesignificant,butthatfallsoutsidethescopeofthistopic

report.

1.2 InfringementofcopyrightsanddatabaserightsThesecondtypeofinfringementofthisfirstcategorydatare-usehasbeenalloweddespiteexisting

third-partyrightsconcernscopyrightsand,inparticular,databaserights.

1Formoreinformationonthissubjectalongwithpracticalexamples,pleaserefertoourtopicreportonOpen

governmentdata:reconcilingPSIre-userightsandprivacyconcerns.


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Characterofcopyrightsanddatabaserights

Copyrightsprotectauthorsofworks,whichmayincludeelementsofOpenData.Copyrightprotection

isbasedoninternationaltreaties(e.g.theBerneConvention,WIPOTreaty,TRIPS),Europeanrules

(CopyrightDirective)aswellasnationalrules(CopyrightActs).Therightoriginates ipsoiure,through

themereshapingofthework,andends70yearsaftertheauthorsdeath.Databaserightshavebeen

createdunderthe1996EUDatabaseDirective.Itprotectstheproducerofthedatabase:theentitythatdidtheinvestment

2necessarytocollectthedatathatjointlyconstitutethedatabase.Theterm

ofprotectionismuchshorter15yearsbutisrenewedwhenthedatabaseisupdated

(significantly).

RelevanceforOpenData

Brieflyput,thecopyrightanddatabaserightframeworksprovideexclusiverightstotheauthorand

theproducer,respectively,essentiallydisallowinganythirdpartytopublish,distributeandcopythe

protectedmaterial.Accordingly,theserightholderscanactagainstaninfringementbyanythird

party.

Obviously,PSBsalsocollectinformationthatisnotnecessarilytheirs.SoifaPSBweretoallowre-useofdatathatareprotectedbythird-partydatabaseandcopyrights,itnotonlyinfringestheserights

itself,italsoallowsathirdpartytoinfringetheserights.Inotherwords,aPSBhastheresponsibility

tocheckwhetheritisentitledtoopenupdataforre-use,asthisisanactwithrelevancetocopyright

anddatabaserights.IfaPSBdoesnotholdalltheIPRsitshouldeitherrefrainfromallowingre-useof

thesedataorrequesttherightholderforpermission(alicence)toallowre-use.

Governmentalrightholders

Itshouldbekeptinmindthattheserightholdersarenotlimitedtotheprivatesector;publicsector

bodiescanalsoowncopyrightsanddatabaserightsandaccordinglyexercisetheserights.Thisisnot

hypothetical.OftenPSBsrelyoninformationfromotherPSBs,forinstancetheCadastreorthe

MappingAgency.Wheresuchorganisationsstillrelyonincomesfromallowingre-use,relyingonIPRs,theyequallyexercisetheserightsinternally,disallowingassociatePSBstoopenupsuchdata.

Sanctions

WhethertheIPRholderispublicorprivate,asarule,aninfringementwillcreatethebasisfor

liability,irrespectiveoftheMemberStateinwhichitoccurs.Accordingly,thenationalcourtwillhave

todetermine,basedonitsnationalrulesoncivilliability(a)whetherdamageshavebeenincurred,

(b)theextenttowhichtheyshouldbecompensatedand(c)whoisliabletopaythecompensation.

1.3 AddressingtheliabilityrisksPrivacyandOpenData

PrivacyprotectionandOpenDatadonotmixwell.Asarule,PSBsshouldapplytherulethatdatasetsholdingsystematicregistrationsofpersonaldatacreateano-goarea.Eveniftheregisterispublic

(likethebusinessregister),theprocessingofthepersonaldataforthepurposeofallowingre-usewill

likelyinfringethird-partyprivacyrights.Accordingly,PSBsshouldeitheranonymizethesepersonal

data,sonoconnectioncanbemadebetweenthedataandthenaturalperson,orthepersonaldata

shouldberemovedalltogether.

Theillustrationbelowsummarizesthedecisionsequencetobefollowed.

2Theinvestmentmustbesignificantandmeasuredonthebasisoftheeffortsto collectthecontent,

sonotthecreationofthecontentitself(EuropeanCourtofJustice,CaseC-203/02BritishHorseracingBoardLtdvWilliamHillOrganizationLtd[2004]ECRI-10415).


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Illustration1:decisionschemeOpenDataandprivacy

Openingupdatafor re-use?

Arethe

data

public?

yes

no

Dothedatahold

personal data?

Privacyprotection

rulesnot

applicable

no

NoOpenData,re-

use not allowed

Canthe

personaldata

beanonymized

orremoved?

yes

Re-use allowednoPrivacyprotection

rulesapply

Doesthere-use

coincide with the

original purpose

ofcollection?

Asarule,re-use is

allowed,but check

isneeded

yesno

Re-use ofthe

personal datanot

allowed

IPRsandOpenData

Sowhencheckingwhetherthird-partyIPRspreventre-use,thePSBshouldfirstassesswhetherthe

dataareinfactpublic.Ifnot,obviously,theydropout.Subsequently,itshouldseewhetherthereare

anythird-partyIPRsthatapplytothedatathePSBwishestoopenupforre-use.IftheIPRsareheld

byassociatePSBs,specialnationalruleswillapplyandwillneedtobeconsulted.Wherethedataare

heldbyprivatesectorparties,allowingre-usewillinfringetheserightsandwillestablishabasisfor

liabilityofthePSB,unlesspermissionisobtainedfromtherightholders.

Illustration2belowsummarizesthedecisionsequencetobefollowed.


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Illustration2:decisionschemeOpenDataandthird-partyrights

Arethere any

IPRs pending

on thedata?Isthe

government

theright

holder?

Specialnational

rules apply andneed tobe

applied.Rights

cleared?

Noliabilityrisks

relatedtothird-party

IPRsandre-usecanbe

allowed

Allowing re-use

withoutpermission of

righ holder will create

liability

Permission rightholder

Openingupdatafor re-

use?

Arethe

data

public?

yes

noNoOpenData,

re-use not

allowed


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ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|liabilityrelatedtoincorrectdata 10

2 LIABILITYRELATEDTOINCORRECTDATATherisksofthesecondcategoryarefundamentallyofadifferentnature:thedataarepublic(sono

privacyconcerns)andtherearenoIPRsinplay(sotheactofopeningupthedataiscompletely

legitimate).Theproblemlieswiththequalityofthedata:theydonotrepresentreality.

Supposethatthenationalministryforroadsandwaterworksmaintainsadatabaseofdetailsof

bridges,includingpassageheights.However,someoftheheightsarenowout-dated.Ifthesedata

wereopenedupandifatransportcompany,relyingonthesedata,weretodamageoneofitstrucks,

thiswouldbeatypicalcasefallingunderthiscategory.

Basisforliability

Obviously,thefirstissuealawyerwilllookatisthebasisforpotentialliability,andthislinksinwith

therelationbetweenthePSBandthere-user.Therearebasicallytwomodalities:(a)thedatahave

beenprovidedbythePSBforre-usewithoutanyconditionsor(b)thedatahavebeenprovided

underalicenceagreement.

2.1 Nore-useconditionsInthissituation,therearenocontractualtiesbetweenthePSBandthere-user,meaningthatthere-

usermustrelyontortlawtoestablishabasisforliability.Althoughmostareasoftortlaware

nationallyoriented(andthusfairlydisharmonized),neverthelessthereisacoresetofrequirements

tovestliability,being:

1.amistakemusthavebeenmade,whenacting(ornotacting)indisconformitywithanobligation

2.thepersonthatmadethemistakemustbeliablefortheact

3.theactbythepersonmusthavecauseddamagesfortheinjuredparty

4.thereisacausalrelationbetweentheactandthedamage

5.therulereliedonbytheinjuredpartyshouldhavebeencreatedtoprotectitsinterests

6.theamountofdamagestobepaidneedtorelatetothespecificsofthecaseathand

Contextofre-useisdifferentfrompublictaskuse

ApplyingtheserequirementstoaPSBopeningupitsdataforre-use,thefirstissueiswhatparties

canandshouldexpectfromeachother.Obviously,thePSBhastheresponsibilitytoensurethatthe

datahaveacertainquality.Butwhatistheextentofthisresponsibility?ThemainpointofOpenData

isthatthepublicsectorproducesthedatawithinthepublictaskandthatthere-use,bydefinition,is

somethingoutsidethatpublictask.Thismeansthatthecontextofthepublictaskuseofthedata

maybefundamentallydifferentfromthesecondaryuse(re-use)bythere-users.

Forinstance,iftheministryofroadandwaterworkscollectsbridgedata,includingthepassage

heights,forthepurposeofkeepingtrackofmaintenanceofthebridges,thepassageheightbecomesaratherinsignificantattribute.Ifthatdataisincorrect,thecompanydoingthemaintenancemayneed

todrivebacktotheofficeandgetanotherladder.Butthatwouldbeit.

Theextentofprecautionrequired

Obviously,thisalsotiesinwiththelevelofprecautionarymeasuresonecanexpectthePSBtotake.If

itiscrystalclearthatthepurposeofre-useofthedatafeatureszerotoleranceforfailure,thisputs

heavypressureonthePSB.This,forexample,appliestoPSIdatabasesthatarereliedoninhigh-risk

transactions,likebuyingproperty.Therefore,typically,nationalcadastreshavetheirownliability

regimes:ifitturnsoutthattheincorrectnessofthedatacanbeblamedonthecadastre,theStateis

liabletocompensatedamagesofthosewhorightfullytrustedthedata.Ofcourse,dataofadifferent

naturecorrespondwithafundamentallylowerlevelofprecautionsandwarranties.


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Weakercausalrelationwillmitigatebasisforobligationtopaydamages

AnotherelementtotakeintoaccountisthatevenifoneweretoconcludethatthePSBdidnotlive

uptotherequirementsonecouldrightfullyexpect,stilltheliabilitytorepaythedamageswouldbe

limited.Herethecausalrelationbetweentheliabilityandthedamagescomesintoplay:wherethis

causalrelationbecomesmoreremoteandunclear,thebasistoallocatealldamagestoopeningup

the(incorrect)databecomesweaker.

Responsibilityofre-users

Ofcourse,eventhere-userhasaresponsibility.Ifthedatacanbeverifiedthroughothersources,it

seemslogicaltodemandthatthere-userperformssuchacheck.Moreover,ifitisobviousthatthe

datacannotberight,thePSBcannotbeheldresponsibleforresultantdamages.

2.2 Re-useundercontractualrelationsPSIDirectiveholdsrelevantprovisions

IfthePSBnotonlywishestoallowre-usebutalsowantstoimposecertainobligationsonthere-

usersordisclaimcertainofitsobligations,itcanrelyonlicencetermsasforeseeninarticle8ofthe

PSIDirective.Theonlyrequirementsforsuchlicencetermsarethattheseconditionsshallnotunnecessarilyrestrictpossibilitiesforre-useandshallnotbeusedtorestrictcompetition.

Furthermore,underarticle8(2)oftheDirective,whenlicencesareused,MemberStatesshallensure

thatstandardlicencesforthere-useofpublicsectordocumentsareavailableindigitalformatand

canbeprocessedelectronically,andtheuseofstandardlicencesshouldbeencouraged.

Exonerationpossibilitieslimited

Thisbeingsaid,thecontractualmodeldoesnotallowthePSBtobeexoneratedfromanypotential

liabilities.The1993UnfairContractTermsDirective3introducesthenotionof"goodfaith"inorderto

preventsignificantimbalancesbetweentherightsandobligationsofconsumersandthoseofsellers

andsuppliers,whichincludesgovernmentalorganisationsincontractualrelations.Thisgeneral

requirementissupplementedbyalistofexamplesoftermsthatmayberegardedasunfair.TermsthatarefoundtobeunfairundertheDirectivearenotbindingonconsumers.Accordingly,wherea

PSBreliesonstandardtermsthatexonerateitfromliabilityorotherwiselimitredresspossibilities,it

islikelythosetermswillbevoid,atleasttowardsconsumers.

Applicabilityofstandardtermsimposecertainprocedures

Nexttothat,inmanyMemberStatestherearecertainformsandprocedurestobeobservedinorder

toensurethatthestandardtermsareinfactapplicabletoacontract.Typically,thiswillinvolve

makingthestandardtermsknownbeforethecontractisclosedandobtainingconsentfromthere-

userastotheapplicability.Obviously,thiscanbecreatedmoreeasilyinadigitalenvironment,butit

certainlycreatesmorehassle,asthere-userwillhavetoregisterandeachcontractenteredintowill

needtobesavedbythePSB.Furthermore,incasethere-userprovidesthedatatoitsclients,thePSBmaystillbeheldliablebythissecondtierre-user,asthestandardtermsdonotrelatetothisre-user.

Insummary,althoughtheuseofstandardlicencesmayseemappealing,therearecertainlymajor

drawbacks,apartfromtheissuethattheexonerationsmaynotholdupinacourtoflaw.Rather,just

asthePSIDirectiveencourages,PSBsshouldprovidethedataasis,withoutfurtherrestrictions,and

ensuresufficientaccompanyinginformation(suchasabasiclevelofmetadataandaproclaimer)

addressingandmanagingtheexpectationsofthere-user.

3CouncilDirective93/13/EECof5April1993onunfairtermsinconsumercontracts,OfficialJournalL095,

21/04/1993P.00290034.


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2.3 AddressingtheliabilityrisksCertainlevelofprecautionsrequired

Nevertheless,itisarguablethatallowingre-usecomeswithacertainlevelofresponsibility.This

responsibilitywouldtypicallyinvolvetheprovisionofaverybasiclevelofmetadata;forexample,

author,dateofpublication,source,descriptionofdata,andcontextof(publictask)collection.

Further,itisadvisabletoconnectaproclaimertothedata,basicallydescribingwhatthere-usershouldexpect(andwhatnot).

Inthiscontext,itshouldalsobekeptinmindthatthealternativeputtingmoreburdensonthe

shouldersofPSBswillingtoopenuptheirdataforre-usewillcertainlycreatemorereluctance.And

thisisexactlywhatwedonotwanttohappen.Inotherwords:whenfacingthedilemmaofrequiring

PSBstobeperfectorhavingtodealwithalevelofuncertaintyastothecorrectnessofthedata,

withoutthePSBbeingliableforthis,thelatterappearsmorepreferable.


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ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|Liabilityforunfaircompetition 13

3 LIABILITYFORUNFAIRCOMPETITION3.1 InterestsofincumbentmarketpartiesTheliabilityrisksofthethirdcategoryarequitedifferentfromthefirsttwo.Letsreturntoour

startingpoint:aPSBopeningupitsdataforre-usewithoutanycharges.Ofcoursetheremaybemarketpartiesthatprovidesimilarinformation(services)onthedownstreammarket.Obviously,asa

freealternativebecomesavailable,theirclientsmayswitchtothefreegovernmentalversion,thus

creatingalossofincome.Accordingly,suchcommercialprovidersmayclaimthatthefreeprovision

ofdatacreatesunfaircompetitionandthatthePSBallowingsuchfreere-useshouldcompensatethe

damagesincurred.

ApplicablelegalframeworkblendsPSIlawandcompetitionlaw

TherelevantlegalframeworkispartlydeterminedbyEuropeanlaw,morepreciselybyarticle102

TFEUonabuseofdominance,byarticle107TFEUonthe(limited)applicabilityofcompetitionlaw

rulestoPSBsand,ofcourse,bythePSIDirective.Moreover,thereareMemberStatesthathave

specificrulestoregulatethemarketactivitiesofPSBs.

Interconnectioniscomplex

ThePSIDirectiveisinspiredbycompetitionlaw.Thiscanbeseenclearlyinarticles8(onlicensing),10

(onnon-discrimination)and11(onexclusivearrangements).TherecitalstotheDirectivealso

illustratethatcompetitionlawisafundamentaldriverforthePSIDirective,ashighlightedinrecitals

1,9,20,25ofthepreamble.Hence,thegoalsofthePSIDirectivefullycomplementthosethat

competitionlawsetsouttoachieve.Mostprominently,openingupPSIforre-useandmaximisingits

fulleconomicpotentialwillcontributetoEuropeanmarketintegration.Competitionlawtherefore

actsastheyardstickbywhichwecanassesstheimplementation,applicationandeffectivenessof

thePSIrules.ItalsoactsasafallbacktoregulatethebehaviourofPSBs(possiblytogetherwith

privatesectorplayers)actingonthemarket.Furthermore,wherethePSIDirectiveissilentwhenitcomestosanctionsforbehaviourthatinfringesitsprinciples,theapplicationofgeneralcompetition

lawbringsnational(andpotentiallyEuropean)competitionauthoritiesintothepicture4.Itisclear

fromrecital20thatthisenforcementofcompetitionlawistobeverymuchencouraged5.

WiththeeconomicaimsoftheDirective,andgiventhatcompetitionlawcanapplytoPSBswhen

theyparticipateineconomicactivities,itisclearthattherewillbeadegreeofoverlapbetweenthe

provisionsofthePSIDirectiveandcompetitionlaw.Atthesametime,theDirectiveextendsthe

applicationofcompetitionlawprinciplestoPSBsasquasi-sectoralcompetitionrules.Itimposes

certainobligationsthatgobeyondthegeneralrules(e.g.transparency,maximumtariffsforre-useof

PSI,non-discrimination)supportingre-users.

RiskofliabilitylimitedtoPSBseconomicactivities

Competitionlawonlyappliesincasetheprovisionof(free)datacanberegardedasamarketactivity.

Accordingly,aPSBcannotbeliableforcreatingunfaircompetitionifitdoesnotperformaneconomic

activity.Assessingwhetherthisisthecase,wecanrelyonsolidcaselawfromtheECJ,startingwith

thefamousHfnercasebasicallycastingawidenetfollowedbyanarrayofrathercasuisticcases

furtherfinetuningtheconceptofmarketactivities.6

4NationalcompetitionauthoritiesandthecompetitionrulesofindividualMemberStateswillcomeintoplay

whenthereisnoeffectontradebetweenMemberStates.5Recital20reads:Publicsectorbodiesshouldrespectcompetitionruleswhenestablishingtheprinciplesfor

re-useofdocuments.6CaseC-41/90HfnerandElservMacrotronGmbH[1991]ECRI-01979; CaseC-263/86BelgianvHumbeland

Edel[1988]ECR05365; CaseC-109/92WirthvLandeshauptstadtHannover[1993]ECRI-06447;CaseC-157/99


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PSIDirectivesetsthemaximumlevelaPSBcanearnonre-use

Wherechargesarelevied,theDirectiveprovidesforamaximum,cost-basedlevel.Thus:

1. thetotalincomefromchargesforre-useofPSImaynotexceed:a. thecostofcollection,production(includingcreationandcollation),reproductionanddissemination(includingusersupport),

b. togetherwithareasonablereturnoninvestment;and2. thesechargesshould:a. havedueregardtotheself-financingrequirementsofthePSBconcerned,whereapplicable,and

b. becost-orientedovertheappropriateaccountingperiodandcalculatedinlinewiththeaccountingprinciplesapplicabletothePSBsinvolved.

PSIDirectivebanspricediscrimination

TheDirectivealsoforbidsPSBsfromapplyingdiscriminatorytermsinparticularchargesto

comparablecategoriesofre-use,explicitlydistinguishingbetweencommercialandnon-commercial

re-use.ThisalsoappliestothePSBthatre-usesitsowndata:ifthePSBholdingthedocumentsallowsforpublicsectorre-useeitherinternallyorthroughanother(associate)PSBtheDirectivewillhave

alevellingeffectsincethesameconditionsforre-usehavetobeimposedasthosegoverning

agreementswithotherre-users.OfcoursethePSBcanalsodecidetolowerthechargestowards

theseotherre-users.

Noobligationtocharge

Thisbeingsaid,itisimportanttostressthattheprovisionsintheDirectiveonchargingforre-useof

PSIdonotprejudicetherightofPSBstoapplylowerchargesornochargesatall.InfacttheDirective

encouragesPSBstomakePSIavailableatchargesthatdonotexceedthemarginalcostsfor

reproducinganddisseminatingthedocuments.Accordingly,fromtheperspectiveofthePSI

Directive,thereseemsnolegalrulepreventingPSBsfromprovidingfreere-use.

ThePSBsintentionsmustbefair

Obviously,theunderlyingintentionsofthePSBmustbefairandtargetedtowardscreatingalevel

playingfieldforallmarketparties.ThiswillcertainlynotbethecaseifthePSBlowersitscharges(to

zero)onlytokillanycompetitioninthedownstreammarket.Combinedwithaprohibitiononre-use

intheupstreammarket,itwillnottakelongbeforethePSBwillbecomethesolesupplierbothinthe

(non-existent)upstreammarketandinthedownstreammarketforvalue-addedservices.

Subsequently,thePSBcouldraiseitspricesagain(evenexceedingthepricepaidbeforethefree

provision).Thisso-calledmarketsqueezewouldcertainlyqualifyasaninfringementofarticle102

TFEU,asthePSBwouldbeabusingitsdominantposition.7

Contractualtiesorraisedexpectations

AlthoughthePSIDirectivemayexplicitlyallowPSBsnottocharge,therecanstillbecircumstances

thatcouldneverthelessestablishabasisforliabilitybecauseofthecreationofunfaircompetition.

Typically,thiswouldconcernsituationswherethePSBandthemarketpartieswouldhaveentered

intoanagreementwherebythePSBhadcommitteditselftoacertainmarketbehaviour(includinga

commitmentnottoenterthemarket).Alternatively,intheabsenceofsuchanagreement,itcould

alsobethatthePSBwouldhaveraisedlegitimateexpectationsastosuchbehaviour.Inthese

B.S.M.Geraets-SmitsvStichtingZiekenfondsVGZandH.T.M.PeerboomsvStichtingCZGroep

Zorgverzekeringen(Smits/Peerbooms)[2001]ECRI-05473 .7CaseC-62/86AKZOChemieBVvCommission[1991]ECRI-3359;CaseC-333/94PTetraPakInternationalSAv

Commission(TetraPakII)[1996]ECR15951


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situations,therecouldbeabasisforsuchaclaim,butobviously,itwouldbebasedonbreachof

contract,ratherthantortlaw.

Legitimategovernmentalacting

Finally,therecanalsobeabasisforcompensationevenifthezerochargingisnotconsideredan

infringement.Suchlegitimategovernmentalactingobviouslylacksanillegitimatecharacter,butasthemarketpartiessufferdamages,thismayimposeanobligationonthePSBtooffercompensation.

3.2 AddressingtheliabilityrisksTherisksthataPSBwillbeliableforcreatingunfaircompetitionasitallowsforfreere-usewillbe

verylimited.Firstly,thequestioniswhethertheactivityshouldberegardedasamarketactivity.The

Europeancaselaw,letalonethenationalcaselawoftheMemberStates,isverycasuisticonthis.

Secondly,wherethePSIDirectiveactuallypromotesthefreeprovisionofdata,itisunlikelythata

courtwillrulethatlivinguptothatrecommendationwillactuallybeunlawful.Thismaybedifferent

incasethePSBsintentionsarenotsincere,forinstanceifitusesthisinstrumenttokillcompetition

withtheaimofreturningtochargingonceamonopolisticpositionhasbeenestablished.Furthermore,contractualarrangementsmaycreatetheriskofliability,forinstanceifthePSBhas

committeditselftorefrainfromopeningupdataforfree.


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ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|Finalobservations 16

4 FINALOBSERVATIONSLiabilityrisksrelatedtoopeningupdataforre-useappeartobelimited

Whereitconcernstheriskofinfringingthird-partyrights,theserisksdonotfundamentallydiffer

fromthecurrentrisks.Atpresentwhenarequestforaccessorre-useofPSIismade,thePSBwillapplytheregulatoryframeworkdescribedabove.Theonlydifferenceisthattherhythmof

publicationandvolumesofdataarequitedifferent:thedecisiontoallowre-usewillmovefromthe

endofthecreationprocesstothebeginningandtheamountsofdatawillbemuchlargerthanwhen

allowingre-useuponrequest.

Risksrelatedtoincorrectdataalsoappeartobelimited.Publicsectorbodiesthatprovidetheirdata

asisdoexactlywhattheDirectiverequeststhemtodo.ExpectingfromaPSBthatanydataare

100%correctissimplyimpossible,particularlysincethecontextofre-usewill,bydefinition,be

differentfromthepublictaskcontextinwhichtheyweregenerated.Obviously,whatwecanexpect

fromPSBsisthattheyaddresstheexpectationsre-usersmayhave.Inthatcontexttheuseofabasic

metadatasetandproclaimersseemsadvisable.

Finally,therisksforcreatingunfaircompetitiontowardsincumbentmarketpartiesbydumping

OpenDataforfreealsoappearslimited,providedtheintentionsofthePSBaresincereandthereare

nocontractualobstaclesorraisedexpectationsinplace.

Checklisttobeobserved

Theillustrationbelowprovidesasimpleoverviewofthestepstobetakenandthecheckstobe

made.Obviously,wherespecificnationalrulesmayapply,thePSBshoulddefinitelyalsocheckthese

beforeopeningupitsdata.

Illustration3:checkingschemeliabilityandOpenData

Can databe opened upfor free

re-use?

A.Arethedataheldbythe

PSB?

B.Arethedatapublic?

C.Arethird-party

rightsinvolved?

D.Arethedatapossibly

incorrect?

E.Can openingupthe

dataforfreere-use create

unfaircompetition?

no

yes

yes

yes

yes

yes

no

no

no

Norisks,openupthedata

Datanot

re-usable

no

Seeillustrations

1and2.

Subsequently,

gotoD.

Apply basic

metadata

schemeand

proclaimer.

Subsequently,

gotoE.

Make

arrangements

with market

parties

involved,e.g.

phasing-in

period


17/17

ePSIPlatformTopicReportOpenDataandLiability|Finalobservations 17

ABOUTTHEAUTHORMarcdeVries,BALLM,isamemberoftheePSIteamandhasprofessional

degreesinbothlawandeconomics(Utrecht1991).Hehasbeenactiveinthe

fieldofpublicsectorinformationre-useformorethan15years,bothatthe

nationalandEuropeanlevels.Heservesclientsinthepublicandprivatesectors

intheNetherlandsandbeyond,ECinstitutionsinparticular.MarcregularlypublishesbooksandarticlesonlegalandeconomicissuessurroundingPSIre-

useandheisfrequentlyinvitedasasubjectmatterexperttospeakat

conferences.

topic report: open data and liability

Documents