Data, Services & Offerings Descriptions

According to the DSSC, a cornerstone of any data space is the precise and comprehensive description of offerings. These offering descriptions are created using machine-readable metadata, making them accessible to both humans and software systems, thus facilitating seamless interaction and automation. They encompass metadata for various elements, including data products, services, data licenses, usage terms, and additional details such as commercial terms and pricing, all systematically organised within a catalogue. High-quality metadata plays a critical role in ensuring the discoverability, interoperability, and usability of data products and services, forming the foundation for an efficient data sharing ecosystem.

For participants to find and use what a data space offers, these offerings must be clearly described. Good descriptions reduce misunderstandings, support automation, and make it easier for new participants to onboard.

• Descriptions should be machine-readable, so both people and systems can interpret them in the same way.

• They typically include details such as:

  • What the dataset or data products, or service contains,

  • How it can be accessed,

  • Which policies or licenses apply?

  • (Optionally) commercial terms like pricing or usage tiers.

• High-quality metadata ensures that offerings are discoverable, interoperable, and usable across different participants and domains.

The iSHARE Trust Framework does not prescribe a specific metadata model for describing offerings. Each data space is free to define or adopt the standards that fit best, but doing so in a structured and consistent way is key to building an efficient and trustworthy ecosystem.

More information can be found in [The DSSC Description].

Data, Services & Offerings Descriptions connects closely with other building blocks:

• Publication and Discovery: Publishes and discovers datasets using machine-readable descriptions.(e.g. DCAT)

• Provenance and Traceability: Tracks who created or changed datasets for transparency and quality.

• Data Space Offering: Includes metadata like usage, quality, access, and pricing in data products.

• Data Models: Defines dataset structure, formats, and standards.

• Access & Usage Policies and Control: Ensures secure access using embedded policies.

• Value Creation Services: Describes services like AI models, anonymization, and orchestration.

• Regulatory Compliance: Data and services must comply with laws like the GDPR and Data Act. Descriptions should include these rules to inform users about applicable regulations.

The guiding questions can help in the co-creation process and in defining this building block, so please see the next section.