Changes for page SDMX 3.1 Standards. Section 1. Framework

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  == 3.4 The SDMX View of Statistical Exchange ==
--Version 1.0 of ISO/TS 17369 [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] covered statistical [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] and the metadata related to the structure of these [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]. This scope was useful in supporting the different models of statistical exchange ([[bilateral exchange>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Bilateral exchange.WebHome]], gateway exchange, and data-sharing) but was not by itself sufficient to support them completely. Versions 2.0 and 2.1 provide a much more complete view of statistical exchange, so that an open data-sharing model can be fully supported, and other models of exchange can be more completely automated. In order to produce technical standards that will support this increased scope, the [[SDMX Information Model>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.SDMX Information Model.WebHome]] provides a broader set of formal objects which describe the actors, processes, and resources within statistical exchanges.
++(% style="color:#e74c3c" %)Version(%%) 1.0 of ISO/TS 17369 [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] covered statistical [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] and the metadata related to the structure of these [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]. This scope was useful in supporting the different models of statistical exchange ([[bilateral exchange>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Bilateral exchange.WebHome]], gateway exchange, and data-sharing) but was not by itself sufficient to support them completely. (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)Versions(%%) 2.0 and 2.1 provide a much more complete view of statistical exchange, so that an open data-sharing model can be fully supported, and other models of exchange can be more completely automated. In order to produce technical standards that will support this increased scope, the [[SDMX Information Model>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.SDMX Information Model.WebHome]] provides a broader set of formal objects which describe the actors, processes, and resources within statistical exchanges.
  It is important to understand the set of formal objects not only in a technical sense, but also in terms of what they represent in the real-world exchange of statistical data and metadata.
--The first version of [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] provided for [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] - specific statistical data reported according to a specific structure, for a specific time range - and for [[data structure definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] - the metadata which describes the structure of statistical [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]. These are important objects in statistical exchanges, and are retained and enhanced in the second version of the standards in a backward-compatible form. A related object in statistical exchanges is the "[[data flow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]" - this supports the concept of data reporting or dissemination on an ongoing basis. "[[Data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]" can be understood as [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] which are not bounded by time. Data structures are owned and maintained by agencies - in a similar fashion, [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]] are owned by [[maintenance agencies>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Maintenance agency.WebHome]].
++The first (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)version(%%) of [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] provided for [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] - specific statistical data reported according to a specific structure, for a specific time range - and for [[data structure definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] - the metadata which describes the structure of statistical [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]. These are important objects in statistical exchanges, and are retained and enhanced in the second (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)version(%%) of the standards in a backward-compatible form. A related object in statistical exchanges is the "[[data flow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]" - this supports the (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)concept(%%) of data reporting or dissemination on an ongoing basis. "[[Data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]" can be understood as [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] which are not bounded by time. Data structures are owned and maintained by agencies - in a similar fashion, [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]] are owned by [[maintenance agencies>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Maintenance agency.WebHome]].
--[[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] allows for the publication of statistical data (and the related [[structural metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Structural metadata.WebHome]]) but also provided for the standard, systematic [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] of [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]]. In version 2.1, [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] were reported independent of the statistical data.
++[[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] allows for the publication of statistical data (and the related [[structural metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Structural metadata.WebHome]]) but also provided for the standard, systematic [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] of [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]]. In (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)version(%%) 2.1, [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] were reported independent of the statistical data.
  However, in 3.0 [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] associated directly with data such as footnotes are reported as [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]] of the [[data set>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]. For other [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]], principally that linked to structures like “[[concepts>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept.WebHome]]”, [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] provides reference "[[metadata sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadata set.WebHome]]", "[[metadata structure definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadata structure definition.WebHome]]", and "[[metadata flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadataflow.WebHome]]". These objects are very similar to [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]], [[data structure definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], and [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]], but concern [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] rather than statistical observations. In the same way that [[data providers>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] may publish statistical data, they may also publish [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]]. Metadata structural definitions are maintained by agencies in a fashion similar to the way that agencies maintain [[data structure definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], the structural definitions of [[data sets>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]].
  The structural definitions of both data and [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] associate specific statistical [[concepts>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept.WebHome]] with their [[representations>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]], whether textual, coded, etc. These [[concepts>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept.WebHome]] are taken from a "[[concept scheme>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept scheme.WebHome]]" which is maintained by a specific agency. [[Concept schemes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept scheme.WebHome]] group a set of [[concepts>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept.WebHome]], provide their definitions and names, and allow for semantic relationships to be expressed, when some [[concepts>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept.WebHome]] are specializations of others. It is possible for a single [[concept scheme>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Concept scheme.WebHome]] to be used both for data structures - key families - and for [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] structures.
--Inherent in any statistical exchange – and in many dissemination activities – is a concept of "service level agreement", even if this is not formalized or made explicit. [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] incorporates this idea in objects termed "[[provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]]". [[Data providers>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] may provide data to many different [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]. [[Data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]] may incorporate data coming from more than one [[data provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]]. [[Provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] are the objects which tell you which [[data providers>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] are supplying what data to which [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]. Similarly, metadata [[provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] for [[metadata flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadataflow.WebHome]].
++Inherent in any statistical exchange – and in many dissemination activities – is a (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)concept(%%) of "service (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)level(%%) agreement", even if this is not formalized or made explicit. [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] incorporates this idea in objects termed "[[provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]]". [[Data providers>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] may provide data to many different [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]. [[Data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]] may incorporate data coming from more than one [[data provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]]. [[Provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] are the objects which tell you which [[data providers>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] are supplying what data to which [[data flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]. Similarly, metadata [[provision agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] for [[metadata flows>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadataflow.WebHome]].
--[[Provision Agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] allow for data collection restrictions to be applied at the level of the [[Data Provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] in the context of the collection ([[data flow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]), this set of information is termed a ‘Data [[Constraint>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Constraint.WebHome]]’ in the [[SDMX Information Model>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.SDMX Information Model.WebHome]]. Additionally, in a dissemination environment, data can be queried at the level of the [[Provision Agreement>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]], this can be a complete [[dataset>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] as supplied by a specific [[Data Provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] for the [[Dataflow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]], a subset of data, or information about what data exists (Data Availability).
++[[Provision Agreements>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]] allow for data collection restrictions to be applied at the (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)level(%%) of the [[Data Provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] in the context of the collection ([[data flow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]]), this set of information is termed a ‘Data (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)Constraint(%%)’ in the [[SDMX Information Model>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.SDMX Information Model.WebHome]]. Additionally, in a dissemination environment, data can be queried at the (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)level(%%) of the [[Provision Agreement>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Provision agreement.WebHome]], this can be a complete [[dataset>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] as supplied by a specific [[Data Provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]] for the [[Dataflow>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dataflow.WebHome]], a subset of data, or information about what data exists (Data Availability).
  A brief summary of the objects described in the information model includes:
  * //**[[Data Set>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]]:**// Data is organized into discrete sets, which include particular observations for a specific period of time. A [[data set>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] can be understood as a collection of similar data, sharing a structure, which covers a fixed period of time.
--* //**[[Data Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] ([[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], also known as Key Family in Version 2.0): **//Each [[data set>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] has a set of [[structural metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Structural metadata.WebHome]]. These descriptions are referred to in [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] as [[Data Structure Definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], which include information about how concepts are associated with the [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]], [[dimensions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dimension.WebHome]], and [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]] of a data “cube,” along with information about the [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] of data and related identifying and descriptive (structural) metadata. In Version 2.1, the term "Key Family" was replaced by "[[Data Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]]" ([[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]]) both in XML Schemas and the Information Model. The [[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] has been modified in version 3.0 to better support microdata by providing the option to define multiple [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]] and for [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]] and [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]] to take arrays of values. An optional reference to a [[Metadata Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadata structure definition.WebHome]] has also been added for describing the [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] associated with the data. When reported, these [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] are included as part of the [[dataset>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]].
++* //**[[Data Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] ([[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], also known as Key Family in (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)Version(%%) 2.0): **//Each [[data set>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]] has a set of [[structural metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Structural metadata.WebHome]]. These descriptions are referred to in [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] as [[Data Structure Definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]], which include information about how (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)concepts(%%) are associated with the [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]], [[dimensions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dimension.WebHome]], and [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]] of a data “cube,” along with information about the [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] of data and related identifying and descriptive (structural) metadata. In (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)Version(%%) 2.1, the term "Key Family" was replaced by "[[Data Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]]" ([[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]]) both in XML Schemas and the Information Model. The [[DSD>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] has been modified in (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)version(%%) 3.0 to better support microdata by providing the option to define multiple [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]] and for [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]] and [[measures>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Measure.WebHome]] to take arrays of values. An optional reference to a [[Metadata Structure Definition>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Metadata structure definition.WebHome]] has also been added for describing the [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] associated with the data. When reported, these [[reference metadata>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Reference metadata.WebHome]] are included as part of the [[dataset>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data set.WebHome]].
  * //**[[Code>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] list:**// [[Code>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] lists enumerate a set of [[codes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] to be used in the [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] of [[dimensions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Dimension.WebHome]], [[attributes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Attribute.WebHome]], and other structural parts of [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]]. [[Codes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] can be organised into simple [[hierarchies>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Hierarchy.WebHome]] within a [[code>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] list, and more complex [[hierarchies>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Hierarchy.WebHome]] potentially involving multiple [[code>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] lists using [[hierarchy>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Hierarchy.WebHome]] and [[hierarchy>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Hierarchy.WebHome]] association structures.
  * //**Value list:**// Value lists introduced in (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)version(%%) 3.0 are similar to [[codelists>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code list.WebHome]] with the exception that the items do not need to conform to the usual [[SDMX>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical data and metadata exchange.WebHome]] rules for identifiable objects. That allows the values to include characters such as [[currency>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Currency.WebHome]] symbols (e.g. ¥) which would otherwise make illegal [[codes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]]. However, unlike [[codes>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]], values are not individually identifiable. Value lists find application in (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)concepts(%%) and [[data structures definitions>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data structure definition.WebHome]] for less structured data and microdata enumerations and can be (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)mapped(%%) to other value or [[code>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Code.WebHome]] lists using [[representation>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Representation.WebHome]] (% style="color:#e74c3c" %)maps(%%).
  * //**Organisation Scheme:**// Organisations and organisation structure can be defined in an Organisation Scheme. Specific Organisation Schemes exist for [[Maintenance Agency>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Maintenance agency.WebHome]], [[Data Provider>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data provider.WebHome]], Metadata Provider, [[Data Consumer>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Data consumer.WebHome]], and Organisation [[Unit>>doc:sdmx:Glossary 2\.1.Statistical unit.WebHome]].