Since the Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2019 first proposed data as a new factor of production, data is no longer just a cold number stored in a database, but a factor of production with unlimited potential. Since then, a series of policies and measures have been introduced at the national level to promote the healthy development of the data element market. For example, the "14th Five-Year Plan for the Development of Big Data Industry" clearly states that it is necessary to deepen the reform of the market-oriented allocation of data elements and promote the orderly flow of data elements. The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Building a More Perfect System and Mechanism for Market-oriented Allocation of Factors" emphasizes that it is necessary to accelerate the cultivation of the data element market and enhance the value of social data resources.
At the same time, driven by the policy of "20 Data Points", the top-level design and planning and supporting measures of data elements will be improved day by day in 2023, bringing new opportunities for the vigorous development of the data element industry. The "20 Data Articles" put forward normative requirements for data property rights, circulation and transactions, income distribution, and security governance, aiming to give full play to the outstanding advantages of data as a strategic resource in the digital era, activate the potential of data elements, release the value of data elements, build an ecology of data elements, and promote the healthy development of the data element industry.
There are four major problems faced by the circulation of data elements
In order to realize the efficient circulation of data elements, we have to face up to the four major problems that currently exist: the lack of uniformity of data standards, like an invisible "barrier", hindering the smooth progress of data circulation; the imperfection of the national unified data circulation market system, which makes it difficult for the data market to form a unified and efficient operation mechanism; the existence of data compliance risks and security risks, which leads to frequent over-the-counter transactions, seriously affects the healthy development of the data market; and the lack of data value innovation, which weakens the enthusiasm and motivation of data circulation. These four major problems not only affect the efficient allocation of data elements, but also restrict the sustainable development of the digital economy. Therefore, solving these problems and promoting the innovation and compliance of data element circulation has become one of the most important tasks for the industry.
Problem 1: Different data standards lead to poor data circulation
At present, the lack of uniformity of data standards across different sectors, industries, and enterprises is a prominent problem. Due to the lack of unified data standards and technical specifications, there are differences in data formats and quality between different departments, industries and enterprises, which makes it difficult for data to achieve interoperability and interoperability, forming a "data island" phenomenon, restricting the circulation and utilization of data, and hindering the rapid development of the digital economy. For example, there are more than 40 types of data buses in the industrial sector, including Siemens' ProfiBus, PhenixContact's InterBus, and Rockwell's DeviceNet and ControlNet.
Problem 2: The national unified data circulation market system is not perfect
In recent years, data exchanges have been established in Guangdong, Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Guizhou, Fujian and other places, and there are many differences in the regulatory standards and operational specifications of data exchanges in terms of data rights confirmation, data pricing, data trading, data security, data value-added collaboration, etc., resulting in local data transactions being "siloed", unable to form a unified market, and failing to maximize the value of data. The national unified data circulation market system has not yet been established, and the efficiency and effect of the national data element circulation will inevitably be affected, which will make it difficult to support the realization of the goal of data element driven digital economy development.
Problem 3: There are hidden dangers in data compliance and security, resulting in OTC transactions far exceeding on-exchange transactions
Data compliance and security are the cornerstones of the data circulation market, and without these guarantees, the market will be exposed to huge risks. According to the data, the scale of the mainland data transaction market in 2022 will be about 102 billion yuan, of which the scale of data on-site transactions will be about 2 billion yuan, and the scale of data over-the-counter transactions will be about 100 billion yuan. The reason why OTC trading far exceeds OTC trading is largely due to the lack of standardized management and supervision of OTC transactions, which provides opportunities for some criminals to take advantage of. In addition, some institutions or individuals abuse or leak sensitive data for their own selfish interests, causing serious losses to users. To change this situation, it is necessary for the government, enterprises and relevant institutions to work together to strengthen the construction of data compliance and security standards, improve the transparency and standardization of data transactions, and strengthen supervision and punishment to ensure the healthy development of the data trading market. For example, the continuous growth of data traffic has accelerated the expansion of the scale of the data "black market", and experts estimate that the market size of the data "black trade" has exceeded 150 billion yuan.
Problem 4: Insufficient innovation of data value leads to a weak willingness to circulate data
At present, the value innovation of data is mainly concentrated in areas that can directly produce economic benefits, such as financial credit authorization, computing advertising and recommendation, and there are still great deficiencies in the integration and innovation of public data, enterprise data and personal data, which makes data holders lack the willingness to circulate and further restricts the development of the data circulation market. At the same time, due to the lack of effective data management and protection mechanisms, data holders have concerns and concerns about data circulation, fearing that data will be leaked or abused. In order to stimulate the willingness of data holders to circulate data, the industry needs to strengthen the exploration and research of data value innovation, improve the ability of data utilization and processing, establish a sound data management and protection mechanism, ensure the security and compliance of data, and promote the prosperity and development of the data trading market.
For example, in the development and exploration of public data in Fujian Province, the provincial platform has entered more than 100 projects, of which credit services account for 43%, finance, taxation and finance account for 36%, and the two together account for 79%, which has a certain gap with the 12 industries and fields focused on the "Data Element ×" Three-Year Action Plan (2024-2026), and it is urgent for the industry to expand the scope of data value development.
The "two-handed" strategy of data element circulation innovation
In the process of promoting the circulation of data elements, it is recommended that the industry adopt a "two-handed" strategy. On the one hand, we should pay attention to the innovation of data value, promote the efficient circulation of data elements in various fields by mining the deep meaning and potential value of data, and inject new vitality into economic development and social progress. On the other hand, it emphasizes the compliant operation of data elements to ensure the security, legitimacy and controllability of data in the process of circulation, so as to provide a strong guarantee for the healthy development of the data market. This "two-pronged" and mutually reinforcing approach will help the industry make better use of data resources, give full play to the important role of data in production and life, and also provide solid support for the construction of digital China and smart society.
Strategy 1: Data value innovation promotes the circulation of data elements
The purpose of data element circulation is to use data to achieve value innovation. Innovation is the core driving force for development, and data value innovation aims to deeply explore the intrinsic value of data, and transform data into resources with market competitiveness and social value through the innovation of technical means and thinking patterns. First of all, data value innovation requires systematic collation and analysis of data, breaking "data silos" and realizing data interconnection. Second, data value innovation needs to combine specific application scenarios and deeply integrate data and business (such as the 12 industries and fields mentioned above) to develop data products and services with practical application value. For example, in the financial sector, data analysis can be used to assess credit risk, and in the medical field, data mining can be used to assist in disease diagnosis and treatment.
Finally, the government, enterprises and all sectors of society should participate in the process of data value innovation (public data, enterprise data and personal data, the integration of the three can maximize the value of data), establish and improve data management and protection mechanisms, and ensure the security and compliance of data circulation. Promoting the circulation of data elements through data value innovation will inject new vitality into economic development and social progress.
Strategy 2: Compliant operation of data elements helps the circulation of data elements
The compliance operation of data elements is the key to solving the problem that OTC transactions far exceed those of OTC transactions. In view of the hidden dangers existing in the current data trading market, the industry should start from the two aspects of "dredging" and "guidance" to gradually solve the problems. First of all, it is necessary to "dredge" the data trading market and standardize over-the-counter trading behavior. The competent government departments should strengthen the supervision of over-the-counter transactions, formulate strict rules and standards for data transactions, and clarify the rights and obligations of both parties to data transactions. At the same time, it is necessary to establish a unified data element circulation platform to provide a legal and safe environment for data transactions and reduce the risks and uncertainties of data transactions. Second, it is necessary to guide the transfer of data transactions to the market. Government authorities and data exchanges should strengthen publicity and education, raise the compliance awareness of data owners and traders, and guide them to actively participate in on-exchange trading.
Finally, it is necessary to establish an incentive mechanism to encourage the transfer of data transactions to the exchange and increase the scale and proportion of exchange transactions. Through the strategy of "dredging" and "guiding", we can gradually solve the problem that the over-the-counter data transaction is much larger than the on-exchange transaction, and promote the healthy development of the data trading market.
Four measures to break the "data silos" and unlock the value of data
With the vigorous development of the digital economy, the value of data is becoming increasingly prominent. However, in order to fully realize this value, the first task is to break the "data island" and form a data integration and intelligence. The following will discuss how to break the "data silos" and unleash the value of data from four aspects.
Measure 1: Use technology to break down "data silos"
Technology is the key to breaking down "data silos". With the continuous development of big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and other technologies, data integration, data cleaning, data mining and other technical means are becoming more and more mature. Through the combination of different technologies, the integration and integration of data from different sources and different formats can be realized, and the digital middle platform of industries/enterprises will be built, so as to break the "data island" and further release the value of data.
Measure 2: Promote data integration and sharing among different departments, industries, and enterprises
As we all know, the value of data lies in the derivative value of data, not the single value behind a certain data. Data often exists in different departments, industries, and enterprises, so promoting data integration and sharing among different departments, industries, and enterprises is an important way to break the "data island". The competent government departments may issue relevant policies to encourage data sharing among government agencies, industry organizations, and enterprises, and establish data sharing platforms to achieve data exchange. At the same time, data exchange and data cooperation can also be used to promote the flow and sharing of data between different departments, industries and enterprises.
Measure 3: Improve the usability and comprehensibility of data and give full play to the value of data
The availability and comprehensibility of data is a key factor in determining the value of data. Through data visualization, data analysis, and data mining, the usability and comprehensibility of data can be improved, so that more people can understand and use data, so as to give full play to the value of data. Among them, data openness, data competitions and other methods can stimulate the society's attention and enthusiasm for data, and promote the release of data value.
Measure 4: Use data-driven innovation to promote sustainable economic and social development
The ultimate goal of breaking down "data silos" and unleashing the value of data is to drive innovation with data and promote sustainable economic and social development. Through data analysis, data mining and other technical means, the potential value of data can be discovered, providing new impetus for the sustainable development of the economy and society, and through data openness and data sharing, innovation and entrepreneurship can be promoted and new economic growth points can be cultivated.
Analysis of excellent cases and summary of practical experience
Through in-depth analysis of excellent cases at home and abroad and summarizing practical experience, we can clearly see the positive role played by data circulation in improving the efficiency of government governance, promoting industrial development, and enhancing social welfare. The following is an analysis of some typical cases at home and abroad.
GDPR
GDPR (European Union General Data Protection Regulation) is a data security and privacy protection regulation established by the European Union to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of personal data. By implementing the GDPR, the EU has raised the bar for data security and privacy protection, and strengthened the protection of the rights of data subjects. This regulation provides a reference for global data security and privacy protection.
U.S. Data Element Circulation Practices
The United States regards commercial interest orientation as the basic criterion for the marketization of data elements, advocates the free flow of data, so as to obtain and control as many global data resources as possible, expand the first-mover advantage of enterprises in technology and market, and gradually form a market-oriented approach and path for data elements that "prevent the monopoly of data property rights, adhere to the openness of public data, guide enterprise data sharing, take into account the protection of personal privacy, lay out global data rules, and encourage the development of data brokerage". The United States has resolutely prevented the monopoly of data property rights through legislative and judicial measures, vigorously promoted the all-round openness of government data through laws and regulations, guided enterprises to enhance data interoperability and sharing through traditional "anti-monopoly laws", protected personal information privacy through sectoral legislation, laid out a global data flow mechanism by amending relevant laws and signed cooperation frameworks with other countries, and promoted the development of data brokerage transaction models through classified supervision.
The above strategies have greatly enhanced the global competitiveness of local digital enterprises in the United States, promoted the extensive flow of data around the world, promoted the rapid development of the digital economy in the United States, and further consolidated the leading position of the American digital economy in the world.
Domestic excellent case 1: public data circulation, taking the "Min Zhengtong" APP in Fujian Province as an example
In the wave of digitalization, Fujian Province's big data practice is at the forefront of the country, among which the "Min Zhengtong" APP integrates the service resources of government departments at all levels in the province and provides a unified government service entrance for the people. The success of the "Min Zhengtong" APP is due to the innovation and practice of Fujian Province in data circulation. First of all, through data integration, the data "barriers" between departments are broken and the efficient circulation and sharing of data are realized. Second, through service innovation, we will simplify government services and improve people's user experience. Thirdly, through strict security measures, the security of people's personal information is maintained.
Domestic excellent case 2: industry data circulation, taking the "Air Travel Vertical" APP as an example
TravelSky Network Co., Ltd. plays the role of the data management department in the vertical field, authorizing the data of civil aviation operation and passenger air travel to the "Air Travel Vertical" platform, while the "Air Travel Vertical" digs deep into the value of data, develops and utilizes the data, and provides passengers with airport, weather, flight and other information, as well as electronic check-in, love channel, lost and found and other services.
Future outlook of data element circulation innovation
Based on the present and looking forward to the future, we will build a diversified and integrated data resource system for public data, enterprise data and personal data. Strengthen data governance, explore typical data scenarios, deepen the application of data resources that integrate data and reality, promote data rights confirmation, promote the realization of data value, carry out pilot work such as data asset evaluation and entry into the table, encourage circulation and transactions, promote cross-border supervision of data, and explore data capitalization applications such as data equity and securitization. Improve standards and norms, strengthen security supervision, innovate guarantee mechanisms, fully mobilize the enthusiasm and initiative of the government, enterprises and all aspects of society, focus on the "three modernizations" synergy of data resource, data asset, and data capitalization, release the value of data elements, activate the potential of data elements, and comprehensively promote the high-quality development of the big data industry and the digital economy.
In the future, the circulation mechanism of data elements will develop in a more standardized, market-oriented and secure direction, providing strong support for unleashing the value of data and promoting the sustainable development of the digital economy. In this process, the government, enterprises and research institutions need to work together to strengthen cooperation and innovative exploration, and constantly improve the circulation mechanism of data elements to adapt to the changing market demand and social environment.
*This article was originally published in Communication World Issue 940 on March 25, 2024 Issue 6
Author: Chen Mingshan, Fujian Big Data Group Quanzhou Co., Ltd
Editor-in-charge/layout: Liu Yanling
Review: Yongzhi Xu
Producer: Liu Qicheng