Czech Business Today

In February 2020, the European Commission presented its European strategy data which aims to make the EU a leader in a data-driven society, create a single market for data and ensure free flow of data within the EU and across sectors from which business, researchers, public administrations and citizens can benefit. One of the pillars of the strategy is the Data Act that aims to foster business-to-government data sharing for the public interest, support business-to-business data sharing, untap the potential of smart contracts, address issues related to usage rights for co-generated data (such as IoT data in industrial settings) etc.

Recently, a public consultation dedicated to the Data Act has been closed and the final proposal by the Commission is due to be published in the fourth quarter of 2021. In general, European businesses welcomed the idea of providing legal certainty for voluntary data sharing and data exchange, because data are the fuel of modern economy and they will allow start-ups and other companies make the best out of digital transformation.

The Data Act is a crucial one as it focuses on B2B data sharing. The main principles that should be embraced by the Commission are the principles of voluntariness and freedom of contract, leaving the companies with a choice about whether to share the data as long as it is in line with the legal framework. Instead of imposing further obligations, incentives should be made in order to support the companies to share data. In general, the companies shouldn’t be forced to share data with governments either, it should be a choice. In cases where B2G exchange of data is necessary, robust security measures should be in place, including protection of commercially sensitive information, specific rules on proportionality and reasonableness of the request, transparent reporting on how the public authority has used the data and also limitations on how long the public bodies may use or store specific datasets.

A big potential to facilitate data sharing are smart contracts. However, many companies are still not using them mainly due to a lack of legal certainty but also due to lack of interoperability and data protection issues. To increase the use of smart contracts, further legal certainty is needed, especially in the form of standards, guidance and other tools. To sum up, as the Data Act will focus on B2B and B2G data sharing, it will be a crucial legislative document for the development of a true digital society. The principle of voluntariness should be kept, together with the focus on avoiding unwanted localisation of data and duplications with current and future legislation.