1.
Belgian Enterprise Register
Open Data
Transparent Belgian company data
« Empowering through openness »
Frank De Saer

2.
http://economie.fgov.be

3.
Belgian Enterprise Register
BCE Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises
KBO Kruispuntbank van Ondernemingen
 Authentic Source
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Official company information
Certified data input
Identification through an unique identifier
Legally encapsulated
Privacy constraints

4.
Content
1,5 mio active companies
 Enterprise
legal persons (companies, foundations, associations…),
sole traders, foreign companies, government agencies…
 Establishment units of the enterprises:
a place where, or from where, the activities of the
enterprise are exercised
 Information
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General information (name, address…)
Legal functions
Activities
Authorisations and qualities
Establishment units information

5.
Current access to the KBO data
 Public Search
 Private Search

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Web interface
Web services
Select
Extracts
(general public)
(companies)
(government)
(government)
(government)
(government)

6.
Present Public Search
 Individual company search engine
 Limited set of data
 Only active companies
Data copy is NOT allowed

7.
Present re-use of data
license agreement for commercial re-use
 Limited set of data without history
 Cost: € 100.000/year
 Restrictions in use
commercial re-use)
(eg. no direct marketing, only

8.
KBO is a driver for more government
efficiency
 KBO is core system for simplifying company related
processes: authorisations, registrations, licences ,
professional skills
 One version of the truth: KBO as source for company
statistics, economic analysis, samples,..
 One single point of entrance: direct & electronic
publication from KBO to Belgian official gazette
 KBO as authentic source for user and access
management: holding the functions and mandatories
of persons who are empowered to represent the
company

9.
Why Open Data?
 Political statement: Open government
– Transparency
 Empowering Economic Value
– Applications, Mobile apps
– Government budget restraints
– Outsource development to the crowd
 Improving data quality
– “Responsibility through transparency”

10.
The road to transparency
 Political statement for more open
government (2009).
 Legal => work started 2010
Law accepted => 17/06/2013
– Still waiting on the implementing acts.
(first half 2014)
 Technical development preparations
started 2012
 Organizational preparations
 Communications and Public Relations

11.
The long “legal” road
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Political discussions
Propositions of new laws
Advice from Privacy Commission
Discussions in Parliamentary
commissions
Voting of new legislation
Executive acts and concrete modalities
(KB/MB)
Advice from Council of State
Signature of King
Publications in Belgian Gazette

12.
Legal framework (law + executive acts)
 16 JANUARY 2003 (current framework)
 17 JULY 2013 (future framework)
 Entry into force: 9/05/2014

13.
The final result: KBO Open Data
 New Public Search
 3 different “Open Data” options

14.
New Public Search
 Public company search engine
 New data
– Functions
– Legal situation
 New selection criteria
– By Activity & postal code
 Non-active companies & establishment
 Free of charge
 Daily updated

15.
http://economie.fgov.be

16.
http://economie.fgov.be

17.
http://economie.fgov.be

18.
http://economie.fgov.be

19.
KBO Open Data File
 Registration (mandatory) in a Web
application
 Free of charge
 2 sets of CSV files
– 1 full copy off all available information
– 1 update file
 Monthly update

20.
KBO Open Data File
Content
 Active companies
– Identification information enterprise
(legal form, financial information,…)
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Identification information Establishment unit
Contact information
Name
Address
Activities
Metadata and codes

21.
http://economie.fgov.be

22.
KBO Public Search Web Services
 SOAP XML web service
 Same possibilities as Public Search
 Paying service
(2000 requests => €50,00 by bank transfer)
 Registration in a web application

23.
KBO Commercialization
License agreement
 License comparable with present
commercial re-use
 Price to be fixed by an act
 Contains more information

24.
Some ideas for an Open KBO
 Linked data: link KBO data with other
(open/private) databases (e.g.. update supplier
files)
 A2A: use web service public search in other
transactional applications (e.g. banking)
 Mobile apps: nearest hospital
 Economic dashboards: start-ups
 Data cleansing

25.
http://economie.fgov.be

26.
Conclusions
Open Data: We are in the middle
of a momentum...
Be creative … Innovate…
Create value
Be Open …

27.
Contact information
FOD Economie, K.M.O., Middenstand en Energie
Beheersdienst van de KBO
Northgate II
Koning Albert II-laan 16
1000 Brussel
Contact center
+ 32 800 / 120 33
Helpdesk
+ 32 2/ 277 64 00
email: helpdesk.kbo@economie.fgov.be
http://economie.fgov.be