The document discusses the Research Data Alliance (RDA) and its process for having its technical specifications identified and approved as ICT Technical Specifications by the European Commission. The RDA works with various stakeholders to develop technical specifications that enhance data sharing and interoperability. Its specifications undergo an open review process before being submitted for identification. Previously identified RDA specifications include recommendations for data citation, repository requirements, and workflows for data publishing. The identification process involves review by the European Multi Stakeholder Platform and the European Commission to ensure specifications meet requirements for adoption in European public procurement.

1. CC BY-SA 4.0
WWW.RD-ALLIANCE.ORG - @RESDATALL | @RDA_EUROPE
The Research Data Alliance
ICT Technical Specifications
Contact: enquiries@rd-alliance.org
Revised version – 29 May 2019

2. www.rd-alliance.org - @resdatall
ICT technical specifications -
Definitions
Standard
A technical specification, adopted by a recognised standardisation body, for repeated or
continuous application, with which compliance is not compulsory
Technical Specification
A document that prescribes technical requirements to be fulfilled by a product, process,
service or system
ICT Technical Specification
A technical specification in the field of information and communication technologies
◦ Identified ICT Technical Specifications
◦ Can be referenced in public procurement, primarily to enable interoperability between
devices, applications, data repositories, services and networks.
◦ Official status under the EU public procurement legislation: “Common Technical
Specification”
◦ Comply with Regulation No 1025/2012, Annex II
Identification of ICT technical specifications : a lighter procedure than
standardisation CC BY-SA 4.0

3. Identification of ICT specifications
in Europe
The European Commission has a flexible approach to standardisation
when identifying new ICT technical specifications.
In July 2017, the Research Data Alliance was officially recognised and approved
as an organisation that issues ICT Technical Specifications.
WHY?
The European Commission can identify ICT technical specifications that are not
national, European, or international standards, provided they meet precise
requirements. Once identified and approved, these specifications can then be
referenced in European public procurement. This flexible approach allows the
EU to respond to the fast evolution of technology in ICT. It also helps
encourage competition, promote interoperability and innovation, and facilitate
the provision of cross-border services.
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/identification-ict-specifications
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4. Identification Procedure
Submission form
Annex 2 of Regulation
By the Commission or a
Member State
Form verification
Multi Stakeholder
Platform (MSP)
Secretariat
Submission to MSP
4 weeks before
discussion
1st discussion
. Establishment of the
evaluation working
groups
Evaluation report
. Proposal for the MSP
advice
. Available 6 weeks before
2nd discussion
Formal MSP advice
2nd discussion at MSP
meeting
Consultation by
Commission
. Relevant Committees
. or Sectorial Experts
Commission
Decision
. Official Journal
publication
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5. Who is involved in this process?
• The European Multi Stakeholder Platform (MSP) is an expert
advisory group on ICT standardisation.
• It deals with:
• Potential future ICT standardisation needs in support of European
legislation, policies and public procurement;
• Technical specifications for public procurements, developed by global ICT
standards-developing organisations;
• Cooperation between ICT standards-setting organisations;
• The Rolling Plan, which provides a multi-annual overview of the needs for
preliminary or complementary ICT standardisation activities in support of
the EU policy activities
The Multistakeholder platform (MSP) is chaired and coordinated by the European
Commission.
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6. MSP Members
ICT Standardisation BodiesMember States and
EFTA countries
Industry, SMEs and society
representatives
The MSP is composed of ICT standard experts
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7. General Conditions for ICT technical
specification identification
•Market acceptance
• Implementation do not hamper interoperability with the
implementations of existing European or international
Standards
• Operational examples
•Coherence principle
• Do not conflict with European Standards
• No new European standard foreseen
• Existing European standards have not gained market uptake
• Existing European standards became obsolete
• Transposition into European standards or standardisation
deliverables not foreseen
ANNEXII:Requirements1and2
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8. Openness: RDA WG processes & procedures are public & completely open
RDA Compliance with Requirements
for ICT Technical Specifications
Consensus: foundation upon which RDA is built
○ All processes and procedures, in connection with focus, work plans,
deliverables, milestones & tangible specifications / recommendations
are consensus based.
○ WG work plans, activities & outputs go through an open & transparent
public community review process in addition to feedback provided by
RDA Technical Advisory Board and Council.
Transparency: all information available, balance and harmonisation ensured and all
feedback considered and responded to.
https://rd-alliance.org/working-and-interest-groups/group-process-procedures.html
ANNEXII:Requirements3(a)(b)(c)
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9. RDA Compliance with Requirements for
ICT Technical Specifications
✓(a) maintenance
✓(b) availability
✓(c) intellectual property rights
✓(d) relevance
✓(e) neutrality and stability
✓(f) quality
ANNEXII:Requirements4(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)
MAIN TARGET MARKET:
▪ Service Providers
▪ Data Providers
▪ Repositories
▪ E- & Research Infrastructures
▪ SW Developers
▪ Data Scientists
▪ Researchers & Scientists
Open information exchange & involvement of all interested categories are at the core of RDA‘s
vision of an open, global, collaborative science. RDA adopts a consultative approach involving all
relevant actors to spur international collaborations necessary to address the global challenges.
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10. Service orientation
federation, virtualisation
Multiple funding sources
flexible, agile business models
Innovation
User and technology-driven
Interoperability of data and
computing
e-Infrastructure approach
RDA Technical specifications
•Data federation cost efficiency
•Avoid / reduce technology &
market lock-in
•Innovation friendly
•Open & User-driven
•Enable European and Global data
Interoperability
•Increased implementation due to
Public procurement
Why RDA ICT technical specifications?
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11. RDA Working Groups – Technical
Specification Producers
RDA Working groups (WGs) accelerants to advance global data-
driven discovery, interoperability & innovation in the long-term.
1. Case Statement open for public comment
2. Comments integrated -> Revised case statement
3. Work begins (12-18 month duration) & presented every 6 months
4. Outputs released for public comment (RfC)
5. Outputs revised -> integration / modification
6. Endorsed & Recognised by RDA Council
7. Openly available for implementation / adoption
Testing &
Implementation
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12. ✓ TS1 Data Foundation & Terminology Model - produced by the Data
Foundation & Terminology WG which ensures researchers use a common
terminology when referring to data.
✓TS2 PID Information Types API - Persistent Identifier Type Registry produced
by the PID Information Types WG, a conceptual model for structuring typed
information to better identify PIDs, common interface for access to this
information.
✓TS3 Data Type Registries Model published by the Data Type Registries WG
providing machine-readable and researcher-accessible registries of data types
that support the accurate use of data
✓TS4 Practical Policies recommendations produced by the Practical Policy WG
designed to support data sharing and interchange between communities.
RDA recommendations approved as ICT
Technical Specifications (20 July 2017)
Official publication at: https://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/policy/ict-standardisation/ict-technical-specifications_en

13. ✓ “TS5 RDA” Data Citation of Evolving Data: supports efficient processing of
data and linking from publications referencing precise subsets of changing data.
✓ “TS6 RDA” Data Description Registry Interoperability Model: an
interoperability model addressing the problem of cross platform discovery by
connecting datasets together on the basis of co-authorship or other
collaboration models such as joint funding and grants.
✓“TS7 RDA” RDA CoreTrustSeal Data Repository Requirements: establishing
criteria and providing technical guidance for assessment and core level
certification of organisations as trustworthy data repositories.
✓ “TS8 RDA” RDA/WDS Workflows for Research Data Publishing Model: A
data-publishing reference model specifying options to research communities for
data publishing workflows based on of emerging standards and best practices.
RDA recommendations approved as ICT
Technical Specifications (5 Dec 2017)
POSITIVE EVALUATION MSP MEETING 5 DECEMBER 2017
https://rd-alliance.org/

14.  RDA/WDS Publishing Data Services: an approach to sharing information about
the links between the literature and research data. A set of hubs collect
literature data (as well as data-data) links from their natural communities using
minor extensions to existing local procedures and, in some cases, inference.
 Research Data Repository Interoperability Recommendations: a set of
recommendations to increase the visibility of an approach facilitating research
data repository platform interoperability to a broader audience.
 Data Collections API: this specification defines a generic way to interact with
collections of research or other data as part of a client-server model.
 Wheat Data Interoperability Guidelines: a set of guidelines to facilitate the
access and interoperability of all wheat related data for wheat research
communities.
RDA recommendations submitted as ICT
Technical Specifications (May 2019)
https://rd-alliance.org/

15. https://rd-alliance.org/
Conclusions
Annex II Requirement compliance
Huge interoperability implications
No conflict with EU standards
Market acceptance
The Research Data Alliance is a global initiative with the support & funding of European
Commission, Australian Government Department of Education and Training, US National
Science Foundation, US National Institute of Standards and Technology, Alfred P. Sloan
Foundation. The legal representative of RDA is the RDA Foundation, a non-profit limited
company with charity status in England and Wales and has it’s legal headquarters at the
Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire.

16. Thank you
RDA Global
Email - enquiries@rd-alliance.org
Web - www.rd-alliance.org
Twitter - @resdatall
LinkedIn -
www.linkedin.com/in/ResearchDataAlliance
Slideshare -
http://www.slideshare.net/ResearchDataAlliance
Contact
Hilary Hanahoe, RDA Secretary General
Email – hilary.hanahoe@rda-foundation.org
Tel - +39 345 4719284
Twitter - @hilaryhanahoe
LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/hilary-hanahoe