Tag: Cigi Papers Series

Companies, governments and individuals are using data to create new services such as apps, artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things. These data-driven services rely on large pools of data and a relatively unhindered flow of data across borders (few market access or governance barriers). The current approach to governing cross-border data flows through trade agreements has not led to binding, universal or interoperable rules governing the use of data. Most countries with significant data-driven firms are in the process of debating how to regulate these services and the data that underpins them.

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In 2017, the International Telecommunications Union reported that almost half (48 percent) of the world’s 7.6 billion people are online. Every day, more people — especially citizens in the developing world — gain internet access. As these individuals supply, demand and send ever more data across borders, they are also creating a global digital economy. As data flows between individuals, firms and governments across borders, these entities process that data, creating new services. Because many of these cross-border data flows are directly or indirectly associated with a commercial transaction, they are essentially “traded.”

Recent Publications