The Danish Agency for Climate Data produces basic public datasets such as the Danish Address Register and the Danish Elevation Model, but the platform also distributes data from other authorities, including information about individuals (CPR), businesses (CVR), and buildings and dwellings (BBR). This means all basic public data can be accessed in one place: The Data Distribution Platform.
The platform’s value isn’t solely derived from consolidating basic data; it also lies in the fact that all data on the platform adheres to specific standards. This standardisation is crucial for enabling interoperability.
Authorities often need to utilise multiple datasets simultaneously. A practical example is when municipalities send out election cards for parliamentary or local elections. They require data on the citizen’s identity (CPR), address, and polling station location (voting districts within DAGI). Because the data is standardised, these datasets can be easily combined, making the task of distributing election cards to all eligible voters relatively straightforward.
Reliability and Security are Paramount
Many authorities and private companies, including the banking sector, heavily rely on access to data from the Data Distribution Platform to perform their functions. As such, the platform is considered critical infrastructure, with a particular focus on maintaining high operational reliability and ensuring the data retrieved is dependable.
Open Data, Significant Societal Value
Data from the Data Distribution Platform is distributed as “open data,” meaning it is available for download at no cost. Denmark decided in 2013 to make basic public data and most geospatial data freely available, which has spurred significant growth in the private sector, removing previous barriers to access.
Anyone can register on the Data Distribution Platform and download data. However, the registers and the Data Protection Act establish terms of use governing how the downloaded data can be used.