Overheidsinformatie

I. Buri, Accessing and Licensing Government Data under Open Access Conditions, Amsterdam, Institute for Information Law/Creative Commons Nederland, 2012.

This study examines how to best ensure the re-use of governmental data in Europe, with special focus on the legal solutions available for managing IP rights that may subsist in public sector databases. The implementation of Directive 96/9/EC introduced a new, sui generis database right aimed at protecting the investments made by the producer of a non-original database in the collection, verification or presentation of the contents of a database. The Database Directive seems not to exclude public sector databases from the sui generis protection. The research therefore analyses the interface between the Database Directive and the Directive on the reuse of public sector information (PSI), as well as the possible solutions for maximizing the re-use of both protected and unprotected public datasets. Among the solutions is the use of open content licences. The study investigates when re-use initiatives can take place with ‘no rights reserved’ conditions (and when, consequently, public bodies should be encouraged to adopt these schemes), and which open content licensing system is best suited to guarantee unrestricted re-use of public sector databases. The study concludes that the development of a strong and effective international standardized open data licensing system should be given priority to provide users of public sector databases with the necessary legal certainty and to stop the proliferation of national (potentially incompatible) initiatives.

09.05.2012

M.M.M. van Eechoud & B. van der Wal, Creative commons licensing for public sector information: Opportunities and pitfalls, Institute for Information Law, 2007.

The Creative Commons model seems an attractice instrument for public sector bodies that seek to enhance transparent access to their information, be it for purposes of democratic accountability or re-use for economic or other uses. This study examined that hypothesis and highlights the major opportunities and pitfalls of the Creative Commons model for public sector information. It assesses where there is a match between the creative commons model and the principles of freedom of information law and the Public Sector Information Directive (EC Directive 2003/98 on the re-use of public sector information) as implemented in the new chapter V-A of the Dutch Freedom of Information Act (Wet Openbaarheid van Bestuur). The assessment was made not only at the more principled, abstract level, but also at the level of the individual licensing terms. It is preceded by an analysis of government information as subject of intellectual property rights, under the Dutch Copyright Act and the Database Act.

Anders dan in de Verenigde Staten, vallen door de overheid openbaar gemaakte werken, in Nederland in beginsel onder het auteursrecht. Mireille van Eechoud en Brenda van der Wal onderzochten of Creative Commons licenties een bruikbaar middel zijn voor de verspreiding van overheidsinformatie en welke juridische problemen daarbij spelen. Het onderzoek concentreerde zich op de positie van overheidsinformatie in het auteursrecht, en de effecten van openbaarheidswetgeving (m.n. Wet Openbaarheid van Bestuur) op het gebruik van auteursrechtelijke bevoegdheden. Ook de recente implementatie van de Europese richtlijn 2003/98/EG inzake het hergebruik van overheidsinformatie werd bij deze analyse betrokken worden.

Bijgewerkt 09.05.2012