I believe what is being discussed is not open data formating but the openness of data in the sense that it is not enclosed by copyright which prevents its being re-used and re-mixed or even – at times – copied.

Open data, that is data free of copyright and similar encumbrances, has a better chance of persisting than the closed variety because open data will be available in many different places and in different forms, while the “protected” variety of data is normally only available in one form and often only in one place, which makes its disappearance that much more likely.

http://ethicalpublicdomain.ning.com/

There is also an interesting proposal I just came across today:

Economists say copyright and patent laws are killing innovation; hurting economy

The authors argue that license fees, regulations and patents are now so misused that they drive up the cost of creation and slow down the rate of diffusion of new ideas. Levine explains, “Most patents are not acquired by innovators hoping to protect their innovations from competitors in order to get a short term edge over the rest of the market. Most patents are obtained by large corporations who have built portfolios of patents for defense purposes, to prevent other people from suing them over patent violations.”

Boldrin and Levine promote a drastic reform of the patent system in their book. They propose the law should be restored to match the intent of the U.S. Constitution which states: Congress may “promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writing and discoveries.”

There is also an interesting proposal:

Economists say copyright and patent laws are killing innovation; hurting economy
The authors argue that license fees, regulations and patents are now so misused that they drive up the cost of creation and slow down the rate of diffusion of new ideas. Levine explains, “Most patents are not acquired by innovators hoping to protect their innovations from competitors in order to get a short term edge over the rest of the market. Most patents are obtained by large corporations who have built portfolios of patents for defense purposes, to prevent other people from suing them over patent violations.”

Boldrin and Levine promote a drastic reform of the patent system in their book. They propose the law should be restored to match the intent of the U.S. Constitution which states: Congress may “promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writing and discoveries.”