Driven by the implementation of GDPR in the EU and alike regulations in other countries, promoted by a growing public awareness for personal data and how it is handled by the Big Techs, data sovereignty and data sharing recently have become highly discussed topics across all industries.
To name just two of many highlights: Yvo Volman, head data policy and innovation in DG Connect at the European Commission shared his thoughts on the importance of data and data sovereignty for Europe. The interview led by Douwe Lycklama, founding partner of Innopay co-hosting the Data Sharing Days 2020, revealed precisely the necessity of rebuilding the trust of businesses and consumers in how their data is handled. That demands for innovative technical concepts and smart ideas. Consequently, Ruben Verborgh, professor of semantic web technology at Ghent University, presented his vision of reshaping the web as we know it. In his view we are entering the „post-Big Data era“, with companies realizing that data harvesting as a business model is a dead end. Instead, people should be given the choice of paying with data or money. Verborgh sees the future consisting of lots of small, interlinked data where people will be put back in control of where they store their data and with whom they share it, independently of the apps they use.
The feedback from the delegates and speakers leaves no room for doubt that the first edition of the Data Sharing Days was a remarkable success. A milestone was reached and laid a firm foundation for an industry-wide data sharing community that starts to speak the same language and for the phase of the transactional internet in the years to come.
More information on the Data Sharing Days: www.datasharingdays.com