The initial study in this project set out a framework identifying key types of data and the appropriate approaches for valuing them.

The scoping study, in partnership with the Open Data Institute and funded by the Nuffield Foundation, produced a framework identifying key types of data and the characteristics determining the value of data.
Assessing the value of data is much more complex than valuing conventional assets, and there does not yet exist an agreed framework for doing so that is shared among policymakers, researchers and industry. Much of the existing literature on data valuation is theoretical, and what empirical work does exist often uses market valuations as the basis for estimation, which are not always appropriate for understanding the social potential.
The initial study included a literature review and a policy report. The latter incorporated insights from stakeholder interviews aimed at developing an understanding of the prevailing market characteristics of data, the reasons why voluntary private data sharing arrangements come about, and the barriers to further opening of public and private data.
The final report included policy recommendations, discussed key conceptual challenges, and identified outstanding questions for research and policy.
Further work on data valuation will follow, with a pilot project testing valuation methods funded by the Omidyar Network.
The data programme is led by Professor Diane Coyle and included Dr Stephanie Diepeveen and Julia Wdowin at the Bennett Institute, and Dr Jeni Tennison, Peter Wells and Lawrence Kay at the Open Data Institute.
Publications
- Potential social value from data: an application of discrete choice analysis
- The Value of Data – Policy Implications
- The Value of Data – Literature Review
- The Value of Data – Summary Report 2020
This is a collaborative project between the Bennett Institute working with the Open Data Institute, funded by the Nuffield Foundation.