Economics of Public Sector Information

Information is of ever increasing importance commercially and socially. The production and distribution of information within the knowledge economy are major issues. It is noteworthy that the Public Sector controls some of the key ‘Utilities’ of that economy as such government's role here is especially crucial. I will focus on two key questions related to digital (upstream) Public Sector Information (PSI):
1) Who should pay to create + maintain it?
2) What regulatory structure should be put in place to support this

Policy Recommendations

1. Make digital upstream non-personal PSI available at marginal cost (i.e. zero)
2. Pay for production and maintenance either out of general government revenue, or more attractively, out of charges on "creators" or "updaters" of the data.
3. Create a proper regulatory authority responsible for oversight of PSI provision, maintenance and pricing.

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