The Commercialization of Government Information and the Proposal for a Directive COM(2002) 207 by the European Commission
AbstractDocument COM(2002)207 final, dated June 5th 2002, contains the proposal of a directive by the European Commission, to the European Parliament and the Council, concerning the commercial use and re-use of government information. The commercialization of government or public sector information is subject to a constant tension between potentially competing interests: the need for a government to maximize administrative resources, the commitment of governments to free information dissemination as a basis for their legitimacy, and market forces. This article explores those tensions in the current European context. |