INCA presentation on data intermediaries as big tech alternative at the 19th Annual ASCOLA Conference
From 4 to 6 July, INCA partner Inge Graef (Tilburg University) presented ongoing work about data intermediaries at the ASCOLA Conference, which took place in Würzburg.
Data intermediaries are services that facilitate the transfer of data between individuals and data holders in an effort to give individuals more control over how their data is used and to move away from the more exploitative manner in which the big techs handle data. For instance, a data intermediary can provide individuals with an overview of what data points are shared with which provider (e.g. a bank, energy provider, social network, government) and help them control the flow of data through on/off buttons. However, there are doubts about the ability of data intermediaries to attract consumers and scale up as it requires time and effort to manage one’s data.
Against the background of the applicable legal framework in the EU’s Data Governance Act, the presentation discussed the promises and challenges of data intermediaries.
