Researchers' access to platform data: summary of responses to the Arcom consultation and proposals

Published on 20 June 2023

Digital

Internet

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On Tuesday, June 20, 2023, Arcom publishes the summary of responses to the consultation on researcher access to platform data launched in May 2022.

Executive summary

In May 2022, Arcom published a public consultation on access to data from online platforms for research purposes. This process was initiated to contribute to the implementation of the Digital Services Act (RSN). Indeed, the societal consequences of online usage are now within the scope of national and European regulators' prerogatives, as of the obvious limits of a platform self-regulation model.

The Digital Services Regulation has thus redefined the responsibilities of the biggest platforms and search engines. In article 40, the text creates an innovative mechanism anchoring researchers' access to these operators' data. In practice, the success and sustainability of the SNSR will depend in part on the work carried out by researchers, which will inform public debate and feed into regulation.

Arcom invited various stakeholders from the worlds of research, civil society and the private sector to express their views on this complex issue. The consultation was structured around five themes:

sharing experiences of using data from these services,
governance,
construction of scientific projects,
data protection and technical considerations,
feasibility of access and incentives.

The analysis of the responses to the public consultation aimed to identify the main difficulties encountered by researchers, and to consider how national and European regulators could facilitate the proper implementation of the new regulation, as well as how they could draw on research work.