Value and impact of open data | EurekAlert! Science News

"UK-based consultancy Charles Beagrie Ltd. has published an in-depth analysis of the value and impact of the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), an intergovernmental organisation that delivers freely available molecular data and services to scientists around the world. The report values the benefits to users and their funders at £1 billion per annum worldwide - equivalent to more than 20 times the direct operational cost of the institute. EMBL-EBI, located on the Wellcome Genome Campus near Cambridge in the UK, manages public life-science data on a very large scale, enabling scientists to share the results of their research, add value and re-analyse datasets in the light of new knowledge. The institute is primarily funded by EMBL member states, the National Institutes of Health in the US, the European Commission, Research Councils UK (RCUK), the Wellcome Trust and members of its Industry programme. EMBL-EBI data and services are freely available to everyone. In addition to its contribution as one of EMBL's member states, the UK Government has invested substantially in supporting EMBL-EBI's essential infrastructure through its Large Facilities Capital Fund, in a series of large-scale projects managed and facilitated by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) on behalf of RCUK. As part of this work, the BBSRC strongly encouraged the establishment of a framework for measuring the value and impact of the institute. In 2015 EMBL-EBI commissioned Charles Beagrie, Ltd., an independent consultancy, to carry out a wide-ranging series of qualitative and quantitative analyses of the institute's activities. The report published today presents the results of these studies, examining the value and impact of its work using a robust methodology. Based on both measurable indicators and interviews with commercial and academic service users and collaborators, the report highlights efficiencies gained and money saved by companies and academic organisations that use EMBL-EBI services ..."