AMI 2018/2, p. 58-60, Thomas Hoeren: "In the information society and data driven economy, data itself and the access to it incontestable is a decisive economic factor. As the European Commission states, "[d]ata has become an essential resource for economic growth, job creation and societal progress". Therefore, it is not surprising, that a debate about the legal appropriation of data has emerged and thoughts on this have filled many pages over the last few years. With the new EU directive on the protection of trade secrets (Directive 2016/943/EU), there now will be a new legal framework for the protection of trade secrets. The approach of the directive reveals the problems in establishing an absolute right to data. This article aims to give a brief overview of the debate on data "ownership" and then considers the question, whether the new directive creates a new absolute right in information or not. This also requires a closer look at the basic statements of the directive's legal approach."
