Political Support for Starting Work on a Norwegian.data.gov
Source: digi.no
Norge får egen «data.gov»
Oslo: 24 February 2010
The Norwegian digital press, digi.no has published an article entitled: Norge får egen «data.gov» (Norway gets its own "data.gov").
The article, by Marius Jørgenrud, published on the 24th February 2010 describes Norwegian political support for beginning focused work on a Norwegian.data.gov.
Reference is made to a letter digi.no accessed. This letter is a response from the Norwegian IT Minister Rigmor Aasrud to Norwegian Finance Committee Leader Torgeir Micaelsen (AP), sent in January 2010 asking the Norwegian IT Minister about a Norwegian data.gov.
Digi.no’s article reports that the response letter from the IT Minister is positive and she wrote that, "I will look at the opportunity to develop and make available a Norwegian version [of data.gov] and have already started work".
This development follows other Norwegian open data initiatives such as these few examples.
- Opening up weather, flight data and map services with very positive outcomes
- The innovative Datakilder.no project
- Oslo Open Data Meetup
- Comprehensive ‘Facts First’ Report presenting the findings of a study on public sector data for re-use and open government data in Norway (by the University of Bergen’s Department of Information Science and Media Studies, published January 2010).
Read the full text of digi.no’s news story online (Norwegian text)
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The text of the digi.no news article states (approximate English translation):
Ministry Minister Rigmor Aasrud has now begun work on a portal for public data sources.
IT minister also calls for open standards and creative commons. Many have argued for a public portal with data sources, patterned on the U.S. site data.gov, a success which was later copied in part by the United Kingdom and Denmark.
Norway should also have a portal with public information resources that can be re-used.
It is known that there are enormous opportunities for innovation and value creation by improving access to the use of public data.
In January, Torgeir Michaelsen (Ap) sent Parliament a letter of renewal which asked what the government will do in this area.
- Will the Minister take the initiative to establish a common public portal for publication of data sets, corresponding data.gov, he asked the party trap.
The answer exists in a letter digi.no have accessed, where the Minister reveals that there is now such a Norwegian portal.
- I will look at the opportunity to develop and make available a Norwegian variation [of data.gov] and have already started work, "the letter personally signed the renewal Minister Rigmor Aasrud.
It gives hope that the information resources, which have previously been locked in internal systems, will be made available. It can form the basis for new and interesting juxtapositions and solutions.
Open standards
It's clear that IT minister is keen on open standards. Both of the recent business visits to Opera Software and later at Friprogsenteret were mentioned. She takes this phrase increasingly often presented in different contexts, also in this letter where she writes:
- It is important to have disclosure of public information and visibility of what's where, but it is also important that information is available in stable and standardized formats. Therefore, we will look at standards for data formats. Moreover, we believe it is important to raise awareness of alternative copyright arrangements (creative commons, etc..) Including for use in the public sector.
Moreover, she writes that many companies wanted access to raw data, to develop new and innovative services.
Yet it is not a given that the maps of the Norwegian Mapping Authority will be freely available.
- It is not immediately obvious that i free access to all information should be given regardless. The general rule is and should be that public information should be free. In some cases, public information is priced by the cost principle. (...) For maps and proprietary, it is determined in the regulations that it can calculate a reasonable profit, the Minister.
Aasrud mentions both frislippet of data from Avinor and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute as good examples of how new services arise, precisely because of the possibility of re-use.
Enormous gains
She also points out the huge value creation potential frislipp of public data means. The EU estimates say that this alone can generate gains of 27 billion Euros.
- There is every reason to believe that also in Norway, this is great value potential. We need, however, recent figures for this, and I will therefore be provided within the figures in areas that show potential and the socio-economic benefits.
The minister expects that this work can be implemented relatively quickly.
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