snake-36376__180On 6 May 2015, the European Commission published a Communication on a Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe. This sets out various measures to be taken so that “individuals and businesses can seamlessly access and exercise online activities under conditions of fair competition, and a high level of consumer and personal data protection, irrespective of their nationality or place of residence”. One theme considered by the Commission to be central to achieving this vision is maximising the growth potential of the ‘big data’ sector in Europe – with the Commission estimating that it is growing by 40% per year, seven times faster than the IT market. Continue reading