CORRECTION FROM SOURCE: Expansion of Open Data Portal

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Dec. 2, 2011) -

This document corrects and replaces the release which was sent today at 1:22 PM EST.

The Honourable Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for FedNor, today announced the addition of more than 4,000 data sets to the Open Data Portal at www.data.gc.ca.

"Making more data sets available is part of our ongoing commitment to Open Government, driving innovation and economic opportunities for Canadians," said Minister Clement.

These additional data sets come from several federal government organizations and include population and economy tables from Statistics Canada, import-export data from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and border wait times from Canada Border Services Agency.

The Open Data portal now has more than 265,000 data sets from 15 participating organizations, up from 10 at the launch of the portal. It is a one-stop shop for federal government data that can be downloaded free of charge by Canadian citizens, researchers, voluntary organizations and private sector businesses. Application developers can reuse and mashup this data for commercial purposes, research, or community services for the benefit of all Canadians.

"Open Data is one of three streams under Open Government," said Minister Clement. "Through Open Government, policy-makers around the world are becoming increasingly connected, collaborating more than ever with their citizens."

IF THERE IS A DISCREPANCY BETWEEN ANY PRINTED VERSION AND THE ELECTRONIC VERSION OF THIS NEWS RELEASE, THE ELECTRONIC VERSION WILL PREVAIL.

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This news release is available online at: www.tbs-sct.gc.ca.

Backgrounder

On December 1, 2011, the Government of Canada expanded the Open Data Portal pilot to include over 4000 new data sets from eight government institutions.

Open Data is about offering government data in more useful and machine readable formats to enable citizens, the private sector and non-government organizations to leverage it in innovative and value-added ways.

The Open Data Portal is a one-stop shop for federal government data that can be downloaded free of charge by citizens, researchers, voluntary organizations and the private sector. Application developers can reuse and mashup this data for commercial purposes, research, or community services to the benefit of all Canadians.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

• Historical export and import data for the dairy, meat and poultry market

Canada Border Services Agency

• Border wait times

Department of Fisheries and Oceans

• Data on libraries of videos, books and other media

Library of Parliament

• Historical data on federal electoral ridings

Public Works and Government Services Canada

• Information on businesses that are currently pre-qualified to supply goods and services to the Government of Canada

Statistics Canada

• Information about Canada's population, economy and governments

Health Canada

• Information about suspected adverse reactions to health products

The Open Data Portal is available at www.data.gc.ca. The pilot phase is taking place over a one-year period, during which the Government will continue to increase the number of datasets available to users and the number of participating departments.

The Open Data Portal is part of the Government of Canada's efforts to drive innovation and economic opportunities for all Canadians.