The Development of Open Government Data in Austria

Cooperation Ogd Austria

The federal co-operation on E-Government issues in Austria has a long history and goes beyond legal obligations between the state, provinces, cities and municipalities. The platform “Digital Austria” (http://www.digitales.oesterreich.gv.at/) was specifically created to coordinate the co-operation of E-Government affairs between these administrative entities. This formal structure was successful in working out specifications in the area of E-Government. However, when incepting the OGD process in Austria, concerns about the relatively inflexible structure of the E-Government processes resulting from a hierarchical system were raised. Open Government initiatives are often bottom-up and difficulties are solved in a cooperative working process, sometimes lacking political legitimation (Teorell, 2006, p. 789).