Researchers, businesses, civil society and the government have an interest in creating the conditions for the legal, secure and fair sharing of non-personal data by private companies and organisations. The Federal Council commissioned the IPI to prepare a report on access to non-personal data in the private sector.

The mandate entrusted to the IPI falls within the framework of the digitisation of society and the economy. Data, which now plays a central role in everyday life and in new business models, is opening up new fields of research and is crucial for the development of artificial intelligence. While the use of data is not, per se, a new phenomenon, the volume of data now being generated and processed, as well as what it is being used for does constitute a paradigm shift.

The IPI commissioned various specialised stakeholders to carry out several analyses: two economic analyses, one analysis examining the legal framework for non-personal data, two analyses on non-voluntary access to non-personal data (i.e. compulsory licensing) and the last on voluntary access (i.e. open data and shared data). A specialist law firm, id est avocats Sàrl, also drafted standardised model agreements, which are available below. These four studies, which served as the basis of the report, are available below. The Federal Council took note of the report at its meeting on 26 May 2021 and mandated the IPI to implement additional support measures and to update the study on the data market in Switzerland.

• Explanatory report

• Data Transfer Agreement (without comment)/(with comment)

• Subscription Agreement (without comment)/(with comment)

• Data Exchange Agreement (without comment)/(with comment)