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Purpose Open data resources contain few signals for assessing their suitability for data analytics. The purpose of this paper is to characterize the uncertainty experienced by open data consumers with a framework based on economic theory. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on information asymmetry theory about market exchanges, this paper investigates the practical challenges faced by data consumers seeking to reuse open data. An inductive qualitative analysis of over 2,900 questions asked between 2013 and 2018 on an internet forum identified how a community of 15,000 open data consumers expressed uncertainty about data sources. Findings Open data consumers asked direct questions that expressed uncertainty about the availability, interoperability and interpretation of data resources. Questions focused on future value and some requests were devoted to seeking data that matched known sources. The study proposes a data signal framework that explains uncertainty about open data within the context of control and visibility. Originality/value The proposed framework bridges digital government practice to information signaling theory. The empirical evidence substantiates market aspects of open data portals. This paper provided a needed case study of how data consumers experience uncertainty. The study integrates established theories about risk to improve the reuse of open data. 

This study provides conceptual clarity on open data users by connecting an empirical analysis of policy documents to emerging theoretical research on data publics. Releasing files to the public for reuse is the primary objective of policy on open government data. Recent public sphere scholarship provides insights into who reuses data by defining a data public as people who actively construct narratives with openly available digital sources. A content analysis of United States federal policy documents identified the language used to represent people who might reuse data. An inductive qualitative analysis of mandated digital strategy reports generated a taxonomy that characterizes people mentioned in open data policy. In addition to the taxonomy, this research contributes a set of propositions to predict data reuse based on these characteristics. The results encourage further dialog between public sphere and digital government scholars to establish testable explanations about data publics. 

This exploratory interpretive case study investigated the collaborative potential of open government data available through data.gov, the US federal open data catalog. Open data is a central aspect of open government collaboration because it fosters exchange and communication between governments and the public. Government organizations that release open data make choices about file formats that have a substantial impact on the potential for collaboration. A file format, such as a document or a spreadsheet, is a constraint on which programs can read the file and what actions a user can do with the file. Overall, we found data.gov formats with limited collaboration potential but files that could be accessed by people with a wide range of skills. The findings are incorporated into suggestions for future iterations of open data policy. The advantages and limitations of using file formats for open data research are considered. The exploratory findings raise questions about future user-centric open data evaluations.