The European Commission proposed today the Data Act, containing rules on who can use and access data generated in the EU across all economic sectors, and on what terms.

The aim of the Data Act is to ensure fairness in the digital environment, stimulate a competitive data market, open opportunities for data-driven innovation and make data more accessible for all. New measures should lead to new, innovative services and more competitive prices for aftermarket services and repairs of connected objects.

The proposal for the Data Act includes among other things:

• Measures to allow users of connected devices to gain access to data generated by them and to share such data with third parties to provide aftermarket or other data-driven innovative services
• Measures to rebalance negotiation power for SMEs by preventing abuse of contractual imbalances in data sharing contracts
• Means for public sector bodies to access and use data held by the private sector that is necessary for exceptional circumstances, particularly in case of a public emergency
• Rules allowing customers to effectively switch between different cloud data-processing services providers and putting in place safeguards against unlawful data transfer. 

The Data Act proposal is the second main legislative initiative resulting from the Commission's February 2020 European strategy for data, following the Data Governance Act. While the Data Governance Act, presented in November 2020 and agreed by co-legislators in November 2021, creates the processes and structures to facilitate data sharing by companies, individuals and the public sector, the Data Act clarifies who can create value from data and under which conditions. Together, the two initiatives are to play a key role in the digital transformation, in line with the 2030 digital objectives, unlocking the economic and societal potential of data and technologies in line with EU rules and values. 

Learn more here.