Feedback Loops in Open Data Ecosystems

TL;DR

This paper explores the role of feedback loops in open data ecosystems, highlighting their importance for data quality and reuse, based on longitudinal studies with Scandinavian transportation agencies.

Contribution

It introduces four types of data feedback loops and emphasizes the roles of publishers and re-users in maintaining data quality.

Findings

Successful establishment of feedback loops in Scandinavian transportation agencies

Identification of four distinct types of data feedback loops

Highlighting the critical roles of publishers and re-users

Abstract

Public agencies are increasingly publishing open data to increase transparency and fuel data-driven innovation. For these organizations, maintaining sufficient data quality is key to continuous re-use but also heavily dependent on feedback loops being initiated between data publishers and users. This paper reports from a longitudinal engagement with Scandinavian transportation agencies, where such feedback loops have been successfully established. Based on these experiences, we propose four distinct types of data feedback loops in which both data publishers and re-users play critical roles.