The document discusses dilemmas around sustainability for the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). It notes that EOSC drivers come from both open science ambitions and industrial politics. There are interweaved but separate economies for data and electronic services that power research. Ensuring open access to data and services while also supporting long-term preservation of these digital assets presents a "commons challenge." Beyond direct funding, partnerships and visibility will be important to achieve sustainability, while adopting some private sector techniques but maintaining academic values. The document outlines several dilemmas around funding models, roles of commercial versus public infrastructure, and level of intervention, and provides recommendations to help navigate these dilemmas.

1. Dilemmas for sustainability
Magchiel Bijsterbosch,
EOSC-hub week , 11 April 2019, Prague

2. EOSC sustainability
Understand EOSC drivers
Data and services
The commons challenge
Sustainability beyond the cash
Instruments
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
2
Diverse set, ranging from Open Science ambitions to
industrial politics
Interweaved, but separate economies
Openness or free-at-the-point of the user, federating
core and long term preservation
Partnerships and visibility in an a system adopting
market thinking and a repositioning of government
intervention
Information, accountability, transaction systems and
governance arrangements

3. Understand EOSC drivers
Diverse set, ranging from
Open Science ambitions to
industrial politics
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
3
Open Science policy: giving Europe a
competitive advantage through open access
data
Industrial politics: utilise public sector force
to counterbalance US and Chinese cloud
service industry
Users in the driver’s seat, with transaction-
based funding as the most straightforward
KPI
Increase efficiency by reducing
fragmentation
Post-New public management thinking
Single digital market agenda and Four
Freedoms

4. Data and services
Interweaved, but separate
economies
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
4
Electronic services are perishable and rivalrous
Value chain is fairly straight forward with a symmetrical
distribution of transaction and value.
Infrastructures are build-up through capital funding and
federated through a combination of GDP-based
contributions and EC funding
Data can be considered as a product from research
investments
The use of data is inherently non-rivalrous
Data economy is often based on value added services
(e.g. tooling or methods for analytics, enrichment) or
two-sided market models
Value of data is increased through network effects.
Data lives and is processed on electronic services,
potentially part of (research) infrastructures.
Technological advancement raises the marginal
production rate and Information technologies speed up
the codification of knowledge based on this data.

5. The commons challenge
Openness or free-at-the-point
of the user, federating core
and long term preservation
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
5
Data under Open Access is non-
excludable, classifying it as a public
good
Scarcity of supply-oriented funding
associated with services free-at-the-
point-of-the-user push the service to
a common-pool-resource
Supporting services e.g. federating
core are prone to free-rider
behaviour
Long-term preservation requires
custodian institutions to balance
preservation decisions with active
research budgets

6. Sustainability beyond the cash
Partnerships and visibility in
an a system adopting market
thinking and a repositioning
of government intervention
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
6
Many collaborations are based on a notion of
partnership and trust. A transactional mentality may
not be adequate here.
Political support for supply-oriented funding depended
on visibility of impact
Funders require stronger indicators evidence of value-
for-money
Ambition in governments to reduce dependency of
supply-oriented funding for structural activities
Adoption of private sector techniques to drive
efficiency in public sector
Solidarity question between Member States to allow
yield of national investments outside borders
Fundamental discussion in Europe on the extend of
interventions at the Federal level

7. Instruments
Information, accountability,
transaction systems and
governance arrangements
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
7
Ensuring a level playing field
Catalogue to lift information asymmetry
between users and services providers on
warrantees
Rules of Participation should govern
public and private sector: predatory
pricing, state aid, …
Transaction mechanisms fit for maturity
level of supply and demand side
Institutions to deal with common pool
resources and conflict

8. Dilemma 1
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
9
while
“A demand-oriented funding
model puts the user in the
driver’s seat allowing for
allocative efficiency, …
…the potential demand failure
doesn’t allow for long-term
planning for full productive
efficiency and increases
registration costs.”

9. Dilemma 2
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
10
while
“Commercial providers may provide
services more efficiently, …
…full freedom of choice may
ultimate erode publicly funded
infrastructure.”

10. Dilemma 3
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
11
while
“Instruments at the Federal level
(portals, non-monetary based
transaction systems) may catalyse
convergence in EOSC, …
…the imposed changes may
obscure and frustrate the
underpinning infrastructures.”

11. Dilemma 4
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
12
while
“Cloud coins or vouchers may help to
simplify transaction in cases where
capabilities to support financial
transactions are not in place
…it requires a duplication of systems e.g.
allocation of funds, exchange rates,
accounting, reimbursement, audit
frameworks, … .”

12. Recommendations
1. Follow the organisational structure of research and digital infrastructures: utilise subsidiarity by default.
2. Make institutional commitments at the Member State-level for supply oriented funding models explicit and
visible.
3. Stimulate demand-oriented funding models with symmetrical value transactions for easier transcending
organisational, national and disciplinary boundaries.
4. Don’t replicate the financial markets to support transactions: default to Euro, while keeping registration costs
to the minimum by supply oriented funding level. Vouchers-like systems can be an intermediary step.
5. Preserve the culture and values in academia while introducing private sector techniques: keep room for
partnerships that have trust, go beyond of what is and accept risks.
6. Ensure through Rules of Participation that demand-oriented funding cannot erode the public infrastructure
through market imperfections.
7. Tackle collective action problems by designing institutions in such a way that they deal with common-pool-
resource-problems.
8. Fund structural activities through structural instruments, e.g. tender operational infrastructures instead of
through project calls.
www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
13

13. www.eoscpilot.eu
The European Open Science Cloud for Research pilot project is funded by the
European Commission, DG Research & Innovation under contract no. 739563
14
Thank you!