Data Is Different

Policy makers must Executive Summary devise a more effective approach to regulating trade in data for four reasons: the unique nature of data as an item exchanged across borders; the sheer Companies, governments and individuals are volume of data exchanged; the fact that much of the using data to create new services such as apps, data exchanged across borders is personal data; and artificial intel [...] The Government of Australia notes “electronic commerce (e-commerce) and digital trade refer to the trade of goods and services using the internet including the transmission of information and data across borders (see trade/Pages/e-commerce-and-digital-trade.aspx). [...] Fifth, much of the data flowing by both data custodians and users is choking the across borders and powering new sectors is use and value of data (Australian Government personal data — digital data created by and about Productivity Commission 2017, 2). [...] Sixth, the US Department of Commerce found that three of the four types of data flows are not affiliated with a transaction; hence, it is hard to describe The Peculiarities of Data some of these flows as “traded”6 (Nicholson and Noonan 2014; US Department of Commerce 2016, and the Role of Data in 3). [...] Data and the Rise of Data Moreover, policy makers do not know how to go Realms from the current system to one that is trusted, transparent and effective in regulating data Policy makers have been trying for years to create flows at the national and international levels.