Creating Value through
Public Sector Information (PSI) Re-use
Eurocham Workshop 30 Nov 2011
Waltraut Ritter
Hong Kong Foresight Centre
This handout is meant as reference material to workshop participants. If you wish to quote the
material in another context, plesase contact the author. Thank you.
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What is PSI?
Information Commons Public Domain
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PSI definition (OECD)
Public sector information is broadly defined
as “information, including information products
and services, generated, created, collected,
processed, preserved, maintained,
disseminated, or funded by or for the
Government or public institution”
OECD recommendation C(2008)36
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PSI re-use framework
The Actors Public Sector PSI Re-users
Supply side Demand side
Their role
To facilitate the opportunity To grasp the opportunity and to innovate
What do we A large number of public bodies A very large number of PSI re-users
Many are large
Know about
Each side? A large number of employees Fall into 4 groups
But Commercial active
They are quantifiable Commercial future activity
And many are similar Not commercial active
Not commercial future activity
The size of the future blocks not known.
www.epsiplatform.eu

Realising the Value of PSI
Governments and public bodies are information
creators, controllers, distributors, information
archivists and record keepers.
Since mid-90s shift in government policies
relating to information generated from within or
on behalf of the public sector.
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PSI in the Knowledge Society
New thinking about information in the digital age:
PSI can create value if used: PSI re-use
legislation
All information assets are potential resources
Reproduction costs close to zero
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PSI in the “old days”
- PSI was made available on request or on need-
to-know basis
- Access to PSI was restricted
- The government “owned” the information
(copyright)
- Focus on e-Government (transactional
information exchanges)
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PSI Objectives
Principles for enhanced access and more effective use
for public and private sectors
Increase total returns on public investments and
economic and social benefits through:
- More efficient distribution
- Enhanced innovation
- Development of new uses
- Market-based competition
International policy principles contribute to global exchange
and use of public information
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NYC Open Data
“This catalog supplies hundreds of sets of public
data produced by City agencies and other City
organizations. The data sets are now available as
APIs and in a variety of machine-readable
formats, making it easier than ever to consume
City data and better serve New York City’s
residents, visitors, developer community and all!”
(QUOTE from website , italic highlight by author)
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London Data Store
“The London Datastore has been created by the Greater
London Authority (GLA) as an innovation towards
freeing London’s data. We want citizens to be able
access the data that the GLA and other public sector
organisations hold, and to use that data however
they see fit – free of charge. The GLA is committed to
influencing and cajoling other public sector organisations
into releasing their data here too.”
(QUOTE from website, bold highlight by author)
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Economic Value
USA 750 bn EUR (7.7 % of GDP)
Europe 68 bn EUR (0.8 % of GDP)
Hong Kong ? ?
Source: Uhlir (2008)
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OECD Recommendation: Policy Principles
Openness Copyright
Access and transparent Pricing
reuse conditions Competition
Asset lists Redress mechanisms
Quality Public private partnerships
Integrity Internat’l access / use
New technologies and Best practices
long-term preservation
Source: Vickery/OECD
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Benefits of PSI Access and Re-use
Direct and Indirect Economic Benefits
• Information industries develop new markets
• Other industries enhance efficiencies
• Individuals empowered as economic actors
• Public sector performance improved
• More innovative research communities
Social Benefits
• Improve transparency
• Enhance education and research
• Support personal decision-making capabilities

Apps for Hong Kong?
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Information problem:
Traffic information on public buses is not real-
time and doesn’t give the user the information
he/she needs to make an informed decision.
Bus companies need to be GPS enabled –
however, TD does not include this basic
requirement in the franchise agreement.
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1823 Service
“In this platform we are trying to present
public information in a more easily
understood format and to make it easier for you
to submit information or pictures that help us
understand your concerns. Please explore the
platform and share with us your ideas about
how we can develop this site and improve
public services for you.”
(QUOTE from website, bold highlight by author)
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Different perspectives:
Government developing services for citizens
based on public, but not publicly accessible,
data.
versus
Government and citizen’s co-creating
information services and applications using
same data.
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Neighbourhood information
Combing knowledge of citizens living in
the neighbourhood with knowledge held
by public agencies could create value to
the current application, making it more
current, interactive and useful.
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Example: EPD water data
“They summarise the river water data
collected by EPD's long-term monitoring
programme during the year. The following
Annual River Water Quality Reports in
portable document format (PDF) are
available for direct viewing or
download.”
(QUOTE from website, bold highlight by author)
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GRS: Public or closed domain?
A lot of public data is not readily
accessible or not intended for creative “re-
use”.
Access and copyright restrictions are an
obstacle to creative value from public
information commons.
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Creating Value from HK’s data
What are the current public information assets in Hong
Kong? (inventory?)
How can we create value from these assets?
How can we increase awareness about PSI opportunities
across all agencies as well as in the business sector and for
the general public?
Can we create an open data multi-stakeholder community?
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Adapting information laws to the digital Age
- Personal data protection laws
- Access to information laws
- Archives and Records policies
- Copyright/Creative Commons laws
- Public information management policies
- Cost assessment acts
PSI and Open data are part of an information policy
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Open Data in Hong Kong
Data.One – the Add Value Machine to build
Hong Kong’s Knowledge Economy
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Contact:
The Hong Kong Foresight Centre is a public policy “do-tank”
engaging in multi-stakeholder dialogues to develop prototypes for
the future of Hong Kong.
Public Sector Information Re-use/Open government data has been
one of our fields of engagement since 2009.
Waltraut Ritter
Programme manager, Open Government
Hong Kong Foresight Centre
www.hkforesight.org
w.ritter (at) hkforesight.org
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