On November 30, 2021, we have a new date with Asedie's International Conference on Public Sector Information Reuse. For this 13th edition, as in previous years, the event will seek to share knowledge and experiences around information and data.

After last year's virtual session, this year the event returns to the in-person format, although seating capacity will be reduced. It will be held at the General Council of Notaries, which has limited the capacity of the room to 50% to ensure the best sanitary conditions.

What is the agenda?

National and international experts will discuss topics related to open data, reuse, transparency and its close relationship with digitization, artificial intelligence, data analytics, data economy and open government, among other topics.

The event will start at 9:30 am. The inauguration will be led by the President of Asedie Mr. Ignacio Jiménez, who will also be in charge of the closing.

The Conference will be attended by representatives of the European Commission - Mr. Szymon Lewandowski, DG Connect, Data Policy and Innovation - and of the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU - Mr. Carlos Romero, Counsellor for Digital Transformation.

Two round tables will also be held, both moderated by Mr. Valentín Arce, Vice President of Asedie:

• Transparency and collaboration, keys for the Infomediary Sector. It will be attended by Ms. Teresa Ruiz Sillero, PP Senator and member of the Transparency and Good Governance Commission, Mr. Francisco Luca Ayala, Deputy of the Assembly of the Region of Murcia (Transparency Area of the PSOE), Mr. Francisco Javier Amorós, Deputy Director General of the Transparency and Good Governance Council and Mr. Mariano García Fresno, Head of the Analysis and Communications Unit of the Centralized Body for the Prevention of Money Laundering, of the General Council of Notaries.
• News and challenges of data reuse. In which 3 top level speakers will analyse the advances, challenges and future options of the sector: Mr. Juan Manuel Rodríguez Poo, President of the National Institute of Statistics (Asedie 2020 Award), Mr. Olivié Bayón, General Director of Public Governance of the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Public Function, and Ms. Marta Saavedra, General Director of Transparency and Citizen Participation of the Government of the Canary Islands.

The Asedie 2021 Award will also be presented during the Conference. This award highlights the work and innovation of institutions, companies or individuals who have promoted the development of the Infomediary Sector and with it, the current economic landscape.

You can see the complete agenda here.

How can I register?

Registration is required in order to attend. You can register here.

From datos.gob.es we invite you to attend to learn about the benefits that the infomediary sector brings to society!

In any project related to data, it is common to have different sources of information. Data is key for companies and public administrations, in decision making or as a basis for the implementation of projects, services or products. But if these data sources display information in a heterogeneous way, it is difficult to operate.

In the world of open data, each administration covers a different scope, be it territorial - municipal, provincial, regional or national - or jurisdictional - for example, each ministry deals with data from a specific area: ecological transition, health, mobility, etc. -. To be able to carry out projects that cover several areas, we will need interoperable data. Otherwise, the exchange and integration of data within and between organisations will be incompatible.

Why is data harmonisation important?

Today, public administrations manage large amounts of data in different formats, with different management methods. It is common to host multiple copies in many different repositories. These data are often disseminated in portals across Europe without any harmonisation in terms of content and presentation. This explains the low level of re-use of existing information on citizens and businesses. Harmonisation of information allows for consistent and coherent data in a way that is compatible and comparable, unifying formats, definitions and structures.

This shaping of data can be done individually for each project, but it entails a high cost in terms of time and resources. It is therefore necessary to promote standards that allow us to have already harmonised data. Below are several examples of initiatives that advocate the search for common requirements, which are included in this visual:

Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda

The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda is working on a National Access Point (PAN, in its Spanish singles) where unified data on different modes of transport is collected. The creation of this portal responds to compliance with Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/1926, which establishes the obligation for authorities, operators, managers and providers of transport services to provide information on multimodal journeys in the EU, based on a series of specifications that ensure its availability and reliability. Among other issues, it indicates that the content and structure of the relevant travel and traffic data need to be adequately described using appropriate metadata.

The creation of this Single Access Point was published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on 22 February. The text indicates that the minimum universal traffic information related to road safety will be made public, whenever possible and free of charge, with a special focus on real-time services.

At the moment, the PAN has data from the DGT, the Basque Government, the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Madrid City Council and the company Tomtom.

Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces

The Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP, in its Spanish singles) has an open data group that has developed two guides to help municipalities implement open data initiatives. One of them is the proposal of 40 datasets that every administration should open to facilitate the reuse of public sector information. This guide not only seeks uniformity in the categories of data published, but also in the way they are published. A fact sheet has been created for each proposed dataset with information on update frequency, formats or recommended display form.

FEMP's future plans include reviewing the datasets published so far to assess whether to add or remove datasets and to include new practical examples.

Also in the field of cities, there is an initiative to further ground the harmonisation of a limited subset of datasets carried out in the framework of the Ciudades Abiertas project, with the collaboration of Red.es. The city councils participating in the project - A Coruña, Madrid, Santiago de Compostela and Zaragoza - have agreed on the opening of 27 harmonised datasets. Currently, common vocabularies have been developed for 16 of them and work continues on the others.

ASEDIE and its Top 3

In 2019, the Multisectoral Information Association (ASEDIE) launched an initiative for all Autonomous Communities to fully open three sets of data: the databases of cooperatives, associations and foundations. It was also proposed that they should all follow unified criteria to facilitate their reuse, such as the incorporation of the NIF of each of the entities.

The results have been very positive. To date, 15 autonomous communities have opened at least two of the three databases. The database of Associations has been opened by all 17 Autonomous Communities.

In 2020, ASEDIE proposed a new Top 3 and started to promote the opening of new databases: commercial establishments, industrial estates and SAT registers. However, due to the fact that not all Autonomous Regions have a register of commercial establishments (because it is not a regional competence), this dataset has been replaced by the Register of Energy Efficiency Certificates.

UniversiData

UniversiData is a collaborative project to promote open data linked to higher education in Spain in a harmonised way. To date, five universities have joined the project: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Universidad de Valladolid and Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M).

Within the framework of the project, the "Common Core" specification has been developed, with the aim of providing answers to two questions that the universities ask themselves when opening their data: What datasets should I publish? And how should I do it? That is to say, with which fields, granularity, formats, encodings, frequency, etc. The Common Core coding has been created in accordance with the Law on Transparency, Access to Public Information and Good Governance. Two University Transparency Rankings have also been considered for its development (that of the Fundación Compromiso y Transparencia and that of Dyntra), as well as the document "Towards an Open University: Recommendations for the S.U.E.", of the Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities (CRUE).

All these initiatives show how data harmonisation can improve the usefulness of data. If we have unified data, its reuse will be easier, as the time and cost of its analysis and management will be reduced.

Content prepared by the datos.gob.es team.

The new edition of the Report on the Infomediary Sector by ASEDIE (Multisectoral Information Association), which analyzes the real, economic and social value of companies that reuse data from the public and / or private sector to develop value-added products.

In the 9th edition of this report, 700 companies have been analyzed, showing a stable sector. Specifically, in 2019 the Infomediary Sector grew by 6.4%, an evolution above that of the Gross Domestic Product, which was 3.4%.

In addition, it provides data on how infomediary companies closed 2019 with a sales volume of more than 2,543 million euros and offering employment to almost 22,000 employees.

Below, we break down the main conclusions drawn from the report:

• 3 sectors continue to concentrate most of the activity, highlighting geographic information. Most infomediary companies are specialized in “geographic information” (24%), “market studies” (21%) and the “economic and financial” subsector (18%).
• Half of the subsectors account for 85% of total sales. Highlights Especially the Geographic Information with more than 600 million euros of turnover (23.6%).
• 61% of the infomediary companies consulted use AIto create value-added products or as a tool. 70% of those surveyed affirm that they also reuse the data for internal use, compared to 30% who indicate that the use is exclusively external.
• More than half of the companies are located in the Community of Madrid (38%), Catalonia (13%) and Andalusia (11%). As in previous years, the Infomediary Sector is represented in all the Autonomous Communities.
• Almost 40% of the companies in the Sector have been created in the last 10 years. The average seniority is 16 years, with the Publishing subsector being the oldest and the Tourism subsector being the youngest.
• The average number of employees per company in the Infomediary Sector amounts to 37, until reaching 21,988 workers. As with billing, the subsector with the highest figure is “geographic information” with 30.5% of the total.
• The aggregate subscribed capital exceeds 310 million euros, almost 11 million more than in the previous edition. In addition, the three most capitalized subsectors are "market studies", "economic and financial" and geographic information.
• All subsectors have 65% or more of companies in profits. As in previous years, the net profit generated has exceeded 125 million euros.
• Data analysis and the opening of new databases stand out this time as the main challenges of the Infomediary Sector, closely followed by Digitization. On the other hand, the lack of a “data culture” and the low quality of data are some of the barriers that hinder the access and reuse of information.

The report includes a review of the situation of the Top 3 Asedie, ASEDIE's initiative to promote that all Autonomous Communities fully open three data sets -Cooperatives, Associations and Foundations -, following unified criteria that facilitate their reuse. At the moment, there are already 15 Communities that have opened at least two of the three proposed databases.

The document concludes with several success stories of infomediary companies and examples of the products and services they produce, such as the Infoempresa directory of innovative companies in Spain or the use that Iberimform is doing IBM Watson.

The reportIt is available on the Asedie website in Spanish and English, and will soon be in French. Also available is report presentation video.

In conclusion, we are facing a sector in good health, which shows outstanding growth. Although 74% of those surveyed believe that the pandemic will directly affect the evolution of the Sector this year, the fact that 96% of those surveyed use data to create their value-added products or services makes them confident in positive long-term prospects.

The 12th International Conference on the Reuse of Public Sector Information, organised annually by ASEDIE, the Multisectoral Information Association, was held on 27 November 2020. On this occasion, due to the health situation, the event was held virtually through a streaming broadcast from the National Geographic Institute in the year of its 150th anniversary. The slogan that marked the event was "The strength and value of the Infomediaries Sector in times of crisis".

The event was welcomed by Lorenzo García, Director of the National Geographic Institute, who highlighted the close relationship between the IGN and ASEDIE, highlighting the importance of updated, quality and open geographic data for reuse companies. A message that was also shared by Ignacio Jiménez, President of ASEDIE and responsible for opening the conference and explaining its dynamics.

Mar España, Director of the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD), gave the opening speech, which focused on the need to make technological innovation and the reuse of data compatible with the guarantee of personal rights and privacy. In her speech, she reviewed current legislation, highlighting the General Data Protection Regulation and the 2019 Directive, which have yet to be transposed in Spain; she highlighted the materials available on the AEPD website to help re-users, such as the guides on data protection in the re-use of public sector information, the anonymisation of information, impact assessments, risk analyses, security breaches or privacy by design and by default, or the recent tool FACILITA, which helps SMEs to comply with the most important obligations related to data protection; and appreciated the work carried out by ASEDIE in providing tools that help its members to carry out their activities in accordance with the legislation. She concluded her speech by emphasising that the AEPD is working on a pact for the protection of people in the digital environment.

Then the event began, divided into two parts:

Part 1: Digital Transformation and Collaboration, key elements for the future of the EU

The first part of the conference consisted of the transmission of the presentations of the representatives of different European bodies, previously recorded on video due to the impossibility of travelling.

• The session began with Pilar del Castillo, MEP, who pointed out how digitisation has maintained the economy during the months of the pandemic and explained the challenges Europe is facing in this field, such as improving connectivity with the deployment of 5G, promoting AI and other disruptive technologies, and the deployment of the data economy. She also highlighted the need to end regulatory fragmentation and invest in standards to ensure that data circulates in the EU ina interoperable way.
• Lina Gálvez, Member of the European Parliament, highlighted the importance of the availability of quality data for the development of Artificial Intelligence and the digital economy. In her speech, she pointed out that Spain is the leader in open data in Europe, and highlighted the importance of promoting public-private collaboration with different actions, among which she mentioned the Aporta Meetings.
• Carlos Romero, Counsellor for Digital Transformation at the Permanent Representation of Spain to the European Union, explained the state of European digital policies in relation to the world of data. These policies are based on the following pillars: a framework of governance of use and access to multi-sector data; investment in data, skills and infrastructure; empowerment of people; investment in SMEs and their training; and deployment of European data spaces in sensitive areas.
• Szymon Lewandowski, a member of the European Commission's Data Policy and Innovation Unit DG Connect, went into these data policies in depth, highlighting the new features included in the new European regulation on governance, which provides solutions for exploiting data conditioned by the rights of third parties or the protection of personal data. Lewandowski recalled that these policies cannot be implemented without public-private collaboration, and spoke of specific projects such as the creation of common European data spaces or the transposition of the ISPS Directive.
• Gianfranco Cecconi, a member of the European Data Portal, explained two tools that European citizens have at their disposal. On the one hand, the European Data Portal itself, with resources such as the catalogue - with more than a million sets of data available -, the reports that are produced periodically (such as the Open Data Maturity Index) or training materials.  And on the other hand, the Data Exchange Support Centre, focused on researching and reporting on good practices in this area.
• Finally, Barbara Ubaldi, head of e-government and open data at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, spoke about the achievements made in the area of open government as set out in its OURdata index, and recalled some key areas in which further work is needed, such as boosting political support or the adoption of federated models and data and metadata standards.

The National Institute of Statistics wins the ASEDIE 2020 Award

Before starting with the second part, the Asedie 2020 Award was presented, an award that has been given for seven years in recognition of the work carried out in the field of data opening by those people, companies or institutions, which contribute to the innovation and development of the Infomediary Sector.

On this occasion, the National Institute of Statistics was the winner. The assessment considered the implementation of experimental initiatives for the creation of new information, the progress made in data collection projects such as the survey on the labour market insertion of university graduates or the European health survey, the open availability of all statistical production, in different formats, through Apis and with an open licence that allows its reuse for commercial purposes. The award was received by Juan Manuel Rodriguez Poo, President of INE.

Part 2: Re-use as a driver of recovery, what are the barriers to be overcome?

The second part of the event included representatives from public bodies who spoke about the situation and the barriers to the data ecosystem and the reuse of information in the sector, at state, regional and local level.

• María Pía Junquera, Director General of Public Governance at the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Public Function focused her presentation on two ideas: the first is that reuse policies cannot be tackled in isolation, but rather through a holistic approach, considering the principles of open government. The second, that collaboration with the private sector, civil society and citizens is very important. In this regard, she stressed that the Open Government Plan 2020-2024, which includes specific measures related to reuse such as the transposition of the directive, has been drawn up taking into account numerous consultations and integrating the opinion of the different groups involved.
• Along the same lines was the intervention of María Rubiño, recently appointed Director General of Transparency, Open Government and Citizen Participation of the Community of Madrid. Rubiño stressed that the opening up of data is both an opportunity to generate confidence in society and an economic opportunity. She also stressed the idea of alliances and collaborations between administrations - sharing structures, vocabulary, etc. - and with the rest of the stakeholders, and commented on some of the actions being carried out by her department such as the implementation of the regulatory footprint or the transparency register. She ended h speech by commenting on the existence of a cultural barrier in public administrations and the need to carry out dissemination work.
•  Judit Flórez, Director General of the Legal Services and Territorial Coordination of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) highlighted that local entities are increasingly aware of the need to open up their data and have been working on its digitalisation for some time, but have not yet become aware of incorporating this discourse in a harmonised way into all their local policies, using the data to improve their efficiency or decision-making. From the FEMP they have working groups and experts who are promoting actions to improve this issue, such as the development of a common structure for the datasets needed to promote improvements in public services.
• Finally, Ana Arredondo, Director of the Information Technology Division of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office, explained the type of data that this body offers to companies and re-users, and highlighted its value in promoting technological and industrial progress.

Ignacio Jiménez, president of Asedie, closed the event by thanking all the virtual attendees for their interest.

You can see all the full speeches at the Asedie website.

The Multi-sector Information Association, better known as ASEDIE, brings together infomediary companies, whose objective is the use, reuse and distribution of information, creating added value products that boost the economy. Its objectives include achieving greater openness of data, fostering public-private collaboration and promoting legislation in favour of access to and reuse of information, among other aspects.

Olga Quirós, Secretary-General of the Association, spent a few minutes telling us how they see the sector and what activities they carry out to achieve their objectives.

Full interview:

1. Could you briefly explain the activity carried out by ASEDIE?

Since its inception in 1999, ASEDIE has promoted and facilitated the reuse of public sector information and is the interlocutor, on behalf of its members, with the Administration to achieve and improve access to information. ASEDIE is made up of organisations and infomediary companies which, in different sectors (Commercial and mercantile information, electronic information, credit bureaus and information technologies), aim to use, re-use and distribute the information, creating added value products which contribute to giving greater security to global mercantile traffic.

In order to advance in this opening of data, we believe that public-private collaboration is of vital importance. The public sector as the holder of the information and the private sector aware of the needs of the business network, the citizen and society in general. At Asedie, we collaborate with different public sector bodies (both in Europe and at the level of the General State Administration, Autonomous Communities and Local Bodies) to achieve openness and access to public information, so that it can be reused and downloaded by machine in different formats.

Our sectors are interlinked through different working committees where the associates also collaborate. We believe that one of the most important ways to achieve objectives within the infomediary sector is through collaboration at all levels. Many of Asedie's partner companies are direct competitors, but they work together using different resources to overcome barriers and achieve common goals.

We study and analyse the issues of interest to our members at both the regulatory and business levels, trying to respond to their needs and transfer their interests and those of the sector they belong, to the various Public Bodies and Institutions.

2. Why is it important to boost the Infomediary Sector in our country?

The value-added products and services produced by the infomediary companies I referred to earlier make the business fabric transparent by fighting, for example, fraud and money laundering.

These actions make the infomediary sector one of the driving forces of the economy and even more so now, in times of crisis.

Opening the data and giving access to it is the way to boost the infomediary sector by supporting transparency and economic development.

Without going any further, the Digital Agenda 2025 points out that data is at the centre of the great transformations in terms of digitalisation and technology.  It also establishes as one of the objectives: to make the transition to a data economy, guaranteeing security and privacy by taking advantage of the opportunities offered by artificial intelligence.

I would like to add that it is vitally important to recognise the infomediary sector as a horizontal/cross-cutting sector, since the other sectors make use of it, having a direct impact on decision-making and the development of the other sectors.

The reuse of data by the infomediaries sector opens up a wide range of opportunities and benefits in our current social, economic and business environment at all levels: local, regional, national and international.

3. One of the activities carried out by Asedie are annual reports on the state of the Infomediary Sector. Specifically, you have been studying the sector since 2013. How has it evolved over these years?

Based on the collaboration with the different representatives of the public sector, we observed that it was necessary to transmit confidence in the sector and to do so, the first thing was to raise awareness, transmit the benefits of transparency and openness of data. This work of knowledge and dissemination of the sector is also carried out through the international conferences that we have organized since 2009 on an annual basis and which have now become a forum for debate and analysis to deal with the advances, challenges and future prospects of the sector. Professionals from the sector participate as speakers at a national and international level. The last one was held on Friday 27 November.

But it was not enough, it was necessary to know not only the sector but also its economic value translated into figures, tangible indicators such as turnover or employment and of course its evolution. We had to transmit that the civil service made sense for the sector.

As an association of infomediaries, who better to prepare this report? We have been producing the annual report on the infomediaries sector for 8 years. Our report is an example of a product elaborated with data from the public sector whose added value is the analytical layer, the professional experience and the study of the environment. We also face the same barriers as any infomediary company. To obtain the data we access public sources so the economic data is accurate, to the cent, but it is also data presented with a time lag of more than one year due to the impossibility of accessing updated information, next year for example will be longer due to the delay in the presentation of accounts in the Registry.

In the report presented this year, the turnover of the 764 infomediaries listed was 2,045,732,378 euros, with an aggregate subscribed capital of the sector of 346,867,065 euros and 22,790 employees. Compared to 2013 data (first report): identified companies 444, turnover 899,225,727 euros, 9,971 employees, subscribed capital 90,035,212 euros.  It can be seen that this is a sector that is constantly growing. Although it must be considered that it is complicated to identify infomediary companies since they do not identify themselves as such, and we have learned over the years to identify them. I can assure you that the infomediary sector is a "healthy" sector with a very promising future outlook.

4.Infomediaries use both open and private data to develop valuable products and services. Which datasets are most in demand by these companies?

Our associates are infomediary companies and need raw materials to manufacture their products or services. One of Asedie's objectives is to achieve openness and access to data.

We all know that the Public Sector is the largest provider of information but not all the information demanded by the Sector is accessible

Through our working committees we have identified more than 60 databases (BBDD, in its Spanish acronym) at the level of the General State Administration (GSA), Autonomous Communities (CCAA) and Local Entities (EELL). Most of the databases identified are related to the transparency of the business world.

To give an example, the interest of the sector and I would dare say of all the citizens in the last few months has been the BBDD of the ERES and ERTES. How is it possible that not all the companies that are in this situation are already known? This is transparency. How can we expect our economy and our business network to evolve or be active if we do not have this vital information at this time? This type of information is needed now and we honestly do not understand what is preventing us from opening it.

With regard to the databases I referred to earlier, they have been prioritised based on the interest of the sector. Each of the databases has been studied by our legal committee to ensure that they comply with the "applicable" regulations and by our information sources committee to identify the datasets or fields to be selected.

There are certain fields that we consider essential, such as "a unique identifier", which eliminates the margin of error when identifying a company. We have observed that sometimes the NIF is not added to the databases because we are not aware of the importance of doing so and in other cases because it has not been requested and the data is not recorded. For example, if when filling in the data in a register the NIF is not made obligatory, the person who fills it in does not always complete it. It has been requested that from now on it be included on all forms as obligatory.

I would like to stress the importance of harmonisation, standardisation and coordination in the opening up of and access to public sector information.  This is something we are working on within the frameworks of collaboration with the Administration in the working groups with the various Autonomous Communities, in the group of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) and with various ministries and public bodies.

5. Over the last year you have launched an initiative to boost all the autonomous communities to open up datasets in a unified way. Can you tell us more about this initiative? How is it working?

As I mentioned earlier we identified prioritized databases and from Asedie a request was made to open them. We observed that there was no harmony, no coordination. I will explain with a concrete example:

At Autonomous Community level, each of the 17 Autonomous Regions opened databases according to their own criteria, but we were unable to obtain a global image. The value of these databases grows exponentially if the number of communities that open them also grows. The sector demands a non-partial overview, without a global image it is difficult to produce quality services or products. The more datasets that are accessed, the more potential value can be extracted from them. The database needs to be open in all 17 ACs and it was not.

To promote a coordinated opening of data, Asedie created the "Top 3 Asedie": three specific databases whose opening has been requested to all the Autonomous Communities, at 17. It has been a joint effort and collaboration at all levels.

Before selecting the databases, we make sure that there are no regulations preventing them from being opened and that at least one Autonomous Region already has them open. The first 3 datasets we chose from our extensive list were associations, cooperatives and foundations.

The cooperative database, for example, is in great demand by the sector as there is no central register. In 2019 it was only open in 3 CC. AA and today there are 13.

We don't stop there, after the opening we analyse them to request improvements, for example as I mentioned before: to include such an important data as a unique identification (the NIF) that in many cases does not appear. It is a piece of information that helps not only to increase transparency but also to make the information much more accurate by reducing the margin of error.

Returning to the cooperatives, 8 of the 13 Autonomous Communities currently open have incorporated the NIF.

In view of the positive result, this year we have begun to work with a new TOP 3 2020: industrial estates, SAT register, and commercial establishments. And the Autonomous Regions which already have the first three open have started with these. In the presentation of the Report on the infomediary sector 2021 we will announce the results.

Within a collaborative environment, in this case public-public, the databases opened in certain Autonomous Regions have served as an example of good practice for other Autonomous Regions which have followed the same steps, bringing us all closer to this much-needed transparency.

At Asedie we have always promoted and recognised these good practices by the Administration, setting an example for other Administrations in Spain and Europe, and through the Asedie Prize, which is awarded to institutions, bodies and individuals who have promoted the Infomediaries Sector by opening data. This year (7th edition) the INE has been awarded.

To promote a coordinated opening of data, Asedie created the "Top 3 Asedie": three specific databases whose opening has been requested to all the Autonomous Communities. These databases are: associations, cooperatives and foundations.

6.What other measures in your opinion would be necessary to continue promoting the reuse of data in Spain?

Firstly, it is necessary that at a political level there is a firm belief that the infomediaries sector is really one of the motors that moves our economy and that for the gear to work it is necessary that the databases of the public sector are opened, made available to businesses and citizens.

While it is true that progress has been made in opening up public sector data, there are still barriers that make reuse difficult or even impossible. And by overcoming these barriers reuse is encouraged. I will comment on just three, the most relevant ones:

The first: The exclusion of the re-use of all the information obtained by the Tax Administration and the Social Security Administration in the performance of their functions is striking, regardless of the type of information and whether or not there are limitations due to intellectual property rights, commercial confidentiality, personal data protection or any other specific regulation.

These Administrations have the most complete, accurate and reliable databases with the most and best updates and are essential for economic recovery.

The second barrier identified is the refusal of requests due to administrative silence. The administration chooses not to respond under the RISP regulations, preventing citizens and companies from knowing the reason for the refusal (that they do not have it, that it is not the appropriate body, that there is any regulatory impediment...). Any request should have a response in one direction or another. The fact that there is no response is perhaps the best example of the Administration's opacity regarding the principles of reuse and transparency.

This year we intend to request the opening of data again formally at the National Government level, to monitor the responses and to follow up.

Finally: The regulations themselves: Here I would distinguish two aspects:

• On the one hand, the different regulations on access to information sometimes imply restrictions on access or re-use. The political support I spoke of earlier is essential, a real boost, so that the transposition of the Directive on the Re-use of Information makes a difference, a before and after.
• On the other hand, the confusion between different regulations and to be specified e.g. with respect to data protection regulations. We are referring to business information, so the personal data protection regulations would not affect it, but we have observed that a series of LOPDPGDD indications are misinterpreted, regarding administrative bodies that publish administrative acts on the editorial boards, in Official Gazettes and Diaries and in any other advertising medium.

These indications are intended to prevent third parties from being able to directly identify natural persons, to whom the publication refers. The problem encountered in practice is that the administrations are applying it not only to the only subjects on which there is an obligation, i.e. natural persons, but also to edicts addressed to legal persons, thus blocking access to this public information.

These that I have mentioned are the greatest barriers that we face from the Sector.

But I could not fail to mention that it is essential to have an organisation, an observatory that monitors practices in the area of openness, access to information. Asedie has recently been appointed a member of the Advisory Council on Digital Transformation of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation. Asedie is also a member of the Standing Committee on the Digitisation of the Economy, Administration and Citizenship. We hope that in these public-private partnership forums we can convey the interests of the infomediaries sector not only in RISP but also in artificial intelligence, data economy, digitisation...

We believe that the newly created data office can be of great relevance to the sector and the economy in general, if it is given the necessary and adequate resources.

We hope that both the transposition of the RISP Directive and the recently approved IV open government plan will solve these barriers and allow for real access and reuse by favouring economic evolution and recovery.

We still have a long way to go.

7. Finally, can you tell us what your next projects are?

The truth is that we have been lucky enough not to stop, even in confinement. I comment on the projects that we have planned in the short and medium term without ruling out any initiative that may arise as a result of the different events.

In the short term

• Presentation of the Report on the Infomediary Sector 2021 with the evolution of the top3 and the monitoring of the responses to the requests to open data.
• Participation as Jury of the Aporta Challenge.
• Update of the success stories of the infomediary sector and examples of good practice in the public sector.
• Regulatory participation, such as the transposition of the RISP and transparency directive.
• Identification of high-value datasets in collaboration with the European Commission and at ministerial level
• Participation in the various forums, committees and working groups. 
• We do not forget about training: internal to the associates in matters of data protection, complying with the Code of Conduct for the Infomediate Sector, and external, collaborating and participating as speakers in matters of digitalisation, access and reuse.

In the medium term

• Consolidation of the Collaboration Agreements and Protocols in favour of transparency (having already been signed with the National Geographic Institute and the Regional Government of Castilla y León)
• Collaboration to coordinate and harmonize data at all levels (AGE, CCAA and EELL).
• Participation in the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy.
• Promotion of the opening of data of interest for the sector in Latin America.

In the 20 years of Asedie we have seen great progress in access to information from the public sector, but there are still barriers and this has to change, we are forced to change it, it may take more or less time, but it will change because the ecosystem in which we move and in which artificial intelligence, digital transformation and big data play a leading role... their common denominator is the data that keeps the ecosystem alive.

Next Friday, 27 November, the "12th International Conference on the Reuse of Public Sector Information" will take place, organized, once again, by Asedie, the Multisectorial Information Association. Due to the circumstances arising from the pandemic, this year's edition will be broadcast online from  9:30 am to 12:30 pm from the Spanish Patent and Trade Mark Office.

One of the objectives of the event is to raise awareness of the importance of the Infomediary Sector as one of the driving forces behind the global economy and to strengthen public-private collaboration to promote the value of Public Sector information through the reuse of open data

What is the agenda of the event?

The event will feature presentations by representatives of public sector institutions and national and international experts who will address issues related to open data, reuse, data protection, artificial intelligence, open government, the data economy and the digitisation of the public sector.

The opening ceremony will be held by Ms. Mar España, director of the Spanish Data Protection Agency.

This will be followed by a series of interviews with representatives of leading European and international bodies:

• Ms. Pilar del Castillo and Ms. Lina Galvez, MEPs and members of the ITRE Committee.
• Mr. Carlos Romero, Counsellor for Digital Transformation of the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU.
• Mr. Szymon Lewandowski, from the European Commission's Directorate-General for Communication Networks, Content and Technologies.
• Mr. Gianfranco Cecconi, from the European Data Portal.
• Ms. Bárbara Ubaldi, Head of Digital Governance and Open Data at the OECD.

After the interviews, there will be presentations by different specialists in the data ecosystem and the reuse of Public Sector Information at state, regional and local level, for example:

• The Director of the Spanish Patent and Trade Mark Office, Mr. José Antonio Gil Celedonio.
• The General Director for Public Governance, Ms María Pía Junquera.
• Representative of the Directorate General for Transparency, Open Government and Citizen Participation of the Community of Madrid.
• The Director General of Legal Services and Territorial Coordination, Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), Ms. Judit Flórez Paredes.

You can see the full programme of the event here.

During the event, as on other occasions, the Asedie Prize will be awarded. This award recognises the work and innovation of institutions, companies or individuals who have promoted the development of the Infomediary Sector and with it, that of the current economic panorama over the last year. You can see the winners of other years in this link.

How should I register?

The event is free, but you must register through this form. Once you have registered you will receive an e-mail with the link to the broadcast.

The deadline for registration is 20 November.

If you want to know more about Asedie you can visit its website or see their recent participation in the Data Talks conferences organised by the European data Portal.

The Multisectorial Information Association (ASEDIE), which brings together the infomediary companies of our country, has, among its objectives, to promote the use, reuse and distribution of information, both public and private, creating value-added products. In this sense, it has launched an initiative to promote the complete opening of three datasets by all the Autonomous Communities (ACs), following unified criteria that facilitate their reuse.

Specifically, the idea is to open three databases, including the tax identification number of each of the entities. These databases are:

• Cooperatives
• Associations
• Foundations

These datasets have been called the "Top 3 ASEDIE 2019". This action was presented in last year''s edition of the Infomediary Sector Report and the evolution of its result has been included in the latest edition of this year''s report. It is worth noting that 764 companies participated in the 2020 edition, an increase of 10% over the previous edition. This increase in participation reflects the growth of the sector in Spain, both in the number of companies and employees working in this activity, and in its turnover, with an aggregate turnover of more than 2 billion euros.

Driving the opening of three new data sets

Since 2018, ASEDIE has been urging those responsible for the databases of cooperatives, associations and foundations in the 17 Autonomous Communities to make an effort to:

1. Identify and open the 3 requested databases
2. Unify download formats
3. Unify the forms to be filled in when registering

These actions mean going one step further in the commitment to information quality, facilitating its standardization. According to ASEDIE studies, 60% of infomediary companies highlight that the main barrier to the reuse of information is that it is only available in some Autonomous Communities or Town Councils. With actions such as the one developed by ASEDIE, it would be possible to homogenize the available information helping to break down this barrier.

2019: a not very encouraging situation, but with a great margin for improvement and projection

During 2019, ASEDIE only found this type of data open in very localized areas of Spain, such as the two mesetas, the coastal areas and the two archipelagos (Balearic and Canary Islands). The overall picture reflected that, in many Communities, most of these three databases remained closed or open without CIF.

2020: great improvements achieved in the sector in recent months.

In this case, the Asedie 2020 Report shows that the situation has improved considerably compared to the previous year, as new areas can be seen where the Autonomous Communities have opened these three databases.

At the date of the presentation of the Report, there were already eight Communities with open databases of Associations, Cooperatives and Foundations. In Navarra, two databases that was closed the previous year were opened in 2020, although without a tax identification number. The Basque Country has two completely open databases and one in the absence of a tax identification number. In Catalonia, these three databases are now completely open with a tax identification number, while in Aragon, the database for cooperatives has been opened in the absence of a tax identification number.

The autonomous community that has had the greatest performance over the last year has been the Balearic Islands, as it has shifted from having the three closed to opening them completely in just one year. The community of Castilla y León is another of those that have all three databases completely open.

The situation will also continue to improve over the coming months, as it is estimated, according to the report, that 88% of the Autonomous Communities are considering action plans to open or improve the publicity of registers of this type.

Next steps: continue to push for the opening of homogenized data

Once ASEDIE has achieved the necessary momentum and after the good reception by the Autonomous Regions, on 18 March the "Top 3 Asedie 2020" was presented, so that this work of opening and homogenization does not stop and the Autonomous Regions that already have the first Top 3 open, will continue with their work:

• Commercial establishments
• Industrial parks
• SAT records

In short, thanks to these initiatives, public-private collaboration will be boosted by making it easier for companies to reuse public information, which will have a great impact on the generation of new business and wealth.

November 28 is the date chosen by Asedie (Multisectoral Information Association) to hold its International Conference on the Reuse of Public Sector Information. As on previous occasions, the event will bring together representatives of public bodies, reuse companies and experts in the field, who will analyze the challenges and opportunities facing the sector.

According to the latest edition of the report on the Infomediary Sector carried out by Asedie, the turnover of the sector grew by 5.4% during the last year analyzed (2017) in Spain, reaching an aggregate turnover of almost 1.8 billion euros and employing more than 20,000 workers, which shows its economic and social value for all citizens.

This year's conference will revolve around the theme “Collaboration and Homogenization: key aspects in the information ecosystem”. The appointment will begin at 9:30 with the welcome of José Antonio Gil Celedonio, Director of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office, where the event will be held. Next, Ignacio Jiménez, President of Asedie, will open the event, which is structured as follows:

• The event will begin with the interventions of Szymon Lewandowski (European Commission), Cristina Morales (Ministry of Economy and Business) and Isabel Moya Pérez (Ministry of Territorial Policy and Public Function), who will talk about new initiatives and barriers, both European as national level, in the field of the reuse of the public sector information.
• Next, the representative of the ASEDIE Special Prize, delivered in 2018 to the Spanish National Geographic Institute, Emilio López Romero will speak.  The 2019 ASEDIE Prize will be awarded below.
• After coffee it will be the turn of Julián Prieto Hergueta, of the Spanish Data Protection Agency, who will analyze the current situation regarding the European guidelines on data protection and its impact on Spain.
• Finally, the round table "Autonomous Communities: Current situation, barriers and future prospects" will take place. The table will be moderated by Valentín Arce, Vice President of Asedie, and will be attended by Ricardo Cantabrana González (Aragón), Joaquín Meseguer (Castilla y León), Borja Mayor (Madrid) and David Martínez Victorio (Murcia) who will discuss the need of  normalizing of information.
• Ignacio Jiménez, president of Asedie, will close the event again at 1:30 p.m.

You can see the full agenda here and sign up for this link.

ASEDIE (Multisector Information Association) has published a new edition of the Infomediary Sector report, which analyses the real, economic and social value of companies reusing both public and private data to create value-added products.

The number of companies analysed on this occasion was 697, 35 more than in the previous edition. It should be noted that the financial information used for sales and employees corresponds to fiscal year 2017, because 2018 information was not yet available.

The main conclusions of the report are:

• 97% of Infomediary companies use open data from the public sector. In addition, three of four combine this information with private data. In this context, it is not surprising that 83% of surveyees believe that the opening of databases and access to them for reuse is apriority for the sector's evolution.
• More than 50% of the companies are located in the Community of Madrid (37%) and Catalonia (18%). However, the Infomediary Sector is represented in all the Autonomous Communities, with the exception of the Autonomous Cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
• 3 sectors continue to concentrate most of the activity. Most infomediary companies specialize in "geographic information" (22%), "market research" (21%) and the "economic & financial" subsector (20%).
• A sustainable sector, but with a large number of new companies. 60% of the companies analyzed have more than 10 years and almost one third (29%) exceeds twenty - as a curiosity, the oldest company dates from 1947-. But it is also a sector that attracts new actors, since 31% of companies have been created in the last 5 years.
• Turnover increased by 5.4% compared to the previous year. Specifically, the aggregated turnover in the Infomediary Sector is € 1,796,778,748. This figure is very positive, although it should be noted that most of the turnover is concentrated in a few big companies.
• And the number of employees increased by 4.6%, reaching 20,229 workers. These data are very positive, since national full-time employment was 2.9%.
• The aggregate subscribed capital of the sector exceeds 300 million euros. After two consecutive years of decline, the aggregate subscribed capital has experienced a 10% growth in this year, although it is lower than 2016.
• 70% of companies present benefits. 70% of the companies present an average profit of approximately 300,000 euros, with the average loss of the remaining 30% being similar, but with a negative sign. As in previous years, the net profit generated has exceeded 62 million euros.
• Low commercial risk. The probability risk estimated for a company over the last 12 months is moderate or minimum for 74% of companies.
• Data analysis and Big Data stand out again as the main challenges of the Infomediary Sector, followed very closely by the opening of new information sources. On the other hand, the barriers for reuse most mentioned by the surveyees are the different data availability between Autonomous Communities and City Councils.

The report ends by showing a series of success stories in infomediary companies, as re-users, and public sector, as open data publishers.

In short, we are facing a sector with good health, which has experienced a remarkable growth, and with positive prospects for the future: more than half of the surveyees  (65%) estimate that the Infomediary Sector will grow over the course of this year, specifically 64% of them estimate the growth to be between 2-5%.

For the tenth consecutive year, Asedie organizes a new edition of the "International Conference on the Reuse of Public Sector Information". The appointment will take place on October 23 at the headquarters of the Spanish Agency for Data Protection in Madrid.

As the previous years, the main objective is to serve as a platform to share knowledge and experiences, coming together all those involved in the Information and Data Community, as well as to promote public-private collaboration for public interest.

Under the motto, "Information, an essential resource for economic development", experts will address the importance of Infomediary sector and the evolution of information access and reuse.

Agenda

The event will begin at 9:45, with a few words from the Asedie President, D. Dionisio Torre. Then, Mr. Carlos Romero, Counsellor of Industry, Telecommunications and Audiovisual, Mr. Jesús Rubí, Deputy to the Director of the Spanish Data Protection Agency, and Barbara Ulbaldi, Head of OECD Digital Government and Open Data Policies Team, will share their  vision on the challenges and opportunities of the infomediary sector, paying special attention to sector regulations.

After the coffee break, a round table entitled "The implementation of Reuse and its evolution in the last 10 years" will take place. Mrs. Cristina Morales, General Deputy Director of Information Society Content from the Ministry of Economy and Business, Jorge Salazar, Coordinator of the Commercial Registry from the Registrar College, Mr. Pedro Vivas, Head of the IDE / SIG Support Area of the Ministry of Development, and Mr. Enrique Crespo, Chief of the Information Access Service of the city of Madrid.

The event will conclude with the presentation of the Asedie Award. Since 5 years, Asedie present this award with the aim of highlighting the work of those people, companies or institutions that have done the best work or the greatest contribution to innovation and development of the Infomediary Sector.

Inscription

Admission is free, but places are limited. Therefore, those interested in attending the conference must register before October 18 through this online form.