Who owns our data?

Google, Apple, Facebook or Amazon – one thing the most valuable companies in the world have in common is that they have exclusive access to their users’ data. . The key to success is the raw material for the New Economy: user data. These data are the drivers of innovation and competitiveness, and at the same time the raw material the companies use to strengthen their market positions. The more data they have, the better their user services, which in turn attracts more users, generating more data.

How do you measure the value of data? Which data-access strategies should established and start-up companies adopt to persevere in the digital frontier? Together with his team of researchers, Dr Daniel Schnurr, Assistant Professor at the University of Passau and Head of the Research Group, is seeking answers to these questions in a project titled Data Neutrality & Open Access: Coherent Economic Policies for the Digital Economy. The researcher has successfully acquired funding for the project via the Center Digitisation.Bavaria (CD.B) for a term of five years.

Blogger and writer Christian Jakubetz has visited the group and describes his first impressions in his blog (in German). He intends to report on the activities of the Research Group on a regular basis.

Dr. Schnurr participates as a postdoctoral ECR in the area Cyber<>Institutions. The researchers, among other things, want to examine the laws and regulations that the data-centric economy would need. Thus, the planned research cluster could build on the findings of the Research Group led by Dr. Schnurr.