In the era of the digital economy, data has become a fundamental national strategic resource whose vast economic potential is widely recognized worldwide. The openness and sharing of massive public data have emerged as key drivers for unleashing exponential data value and expanding the virtual space for enterprise value creation. Consequently, government efforts to release data value through public data openness platforms have become an essential pathway for advancing the construction of Digital China and promoting the market-oriented allocation of data elements. However, existing research predominantly focuses on the institutional background and evaluation frameworks of public data openness, while systematic analyses from a micro-enterprise perspective remain limited. In line with the policy directives outlined in the “Twenty Data Measures”, this paper seeks to explore the micro-level mechanisms through which public data openness drives enterprise value creation, analyze its operational pathways and heterogeneous enterprise responses, and provide theoretical support for optimizing the foundational data system and digital economic development.
This paper employs a combination of normative analysis and empirical testing. First, it constructs an evolutionary game model between the government and enterprises. Through equilibrium analysis of data openness and acquisition strategies, and data quality selection strategies, it proposes theoretical hypotheses that public data openness enhances enterprise value through optimizing the business environment and is moderated by enterprise data application capabilities. Based on this, using data from A-share listed companies in China from 2007 to 2020, the study employs a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) model, using the establishment timing of provincial public data platforms as the policy shock variable, controlling for firm characteristics and regional factors, and ensures robustness through parallel trend tests, propensity score matching (PSM), and instrumental variable methods. The findings indicate that: (1) Public data openness significantly enhances enterprise value by optimizing the business environment (reducing information asymmetry and promoting fair competition); (2) Business environment optimization is a key mediating mechanism; (3) Enterprise data application capabilities significantly moderate the value creation effect—the stronger the capability, the more significant the effect; (4) Non-state-owned enterprises, due to their profit orientation and high sensitivity to the business environment, exhibit stronger value creation effects, demonstrating notable heterogeneity. Theoretically, the evolutionary game model demonstrates that government and enterprises tend toward a stable equilibrium characterized by “data openness-data acquisition,” in which data quality and enterprise capability act as critical influencing factors.
Compared with existing research, this paper makes marginal contributions in two main aspects: First, from a theoretical perspective, it reveals the micro-mechanisms of value creation in the construction of “Data Element X”. By proposing theoretical propositions on the value creation mechanism of public data within an evolutionary game framework, this paper enriches the literature on micro-level value creation mechanisms of public data and provides a meaningful exploration of foundational data system research. Second, public data openness represents the data resource that enterprises—particularly non-leading platform firms—can access at low cost, thereby overcoming the incentive dilemma of “usable but not visible.” Accordingly, as a core actor in the digital economy system, the government is incorporated into the analytical framework of enterprise value creation, providing a novel perspective on how to realize data-driven empowerment of the real economy.
Overall, this paper provides a new lens for research in digital economy and management. The findings offer valuable insights for the design of foundational data systems, the construction of digital government, and the advancement of enterprise digital transformation. Moreover, the study promotes interdisciplinary dialogue and contributes to international discussions on the theory and practice of data elements.
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