Clarification on Differences Between eikon and refinitiv-data Libraries

I have a question regarding the appropriate usage of the eikon and refinitiv-data Python libraries for retrieving company metadata based on RICs.

Previously, I have used the eikon package as follows to retrieve metadata fields such as "TR.RIC", "TR.ExchangeName", "TR.ExchangeTicker", "CURRENCY", "TR.ISIN", and "TR.CUSIP":

import eikon as ek

ek.set_app_key("...")

df, err = ek.get_data(ric_list, fields)

However, I have recently tested the newer refinitiv-data package and found that the following also returns valid metadata for the same RICs:

import refinitiv.data as rd

rd.open_session()

df = rd.get_data(universe=ric_list, fields=fields)

Could you please clarify:

If I use the same RICs and fields, will the data returned by the eikon library and the refinitiv.data library be exactly the same?

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Accepted answers

Gurpreet

https://community.developers.refinitiv.com/discussion/comment/127157#Comment_127157

The API call can use almost every identifier except tickers. You can use RIC, ISIN, CUSIP or PERM_ID etc with the get_data API calls.

All comments

Gurpreet

Hello @Ziye

Most of the code using the legacy EDAPI will work with the new data libraries with minimal change. Please refer to this article to understand and use the Data library migration steps.

Also note that you should migrate to the newer LD Library, which works quite similarly. Here are the code samples for it.

Ziye

https://community.developers.refinitiv.com/discussion/comment/127116#Comment_127116

Dear Gurpreet,

Thanks for your respone.

May I also ask what can be used in the universe parameter of the ld.get_data() function? I understand that RICs are commonly used, but I would like to know whether other identifiers such as ISINs, CUSIPs, SEDOLs, PermIDs, or OrgIDs are also valid inputs. I reviewed the documentation in the GitHub repository lseg-api-examples, but the only detail provided under universe is: "Single instrument or list of instruments to request."

Gurpreet

https://community.developers.refinitiv.com/discussion/comment/127154#Comment_127154

The API call expects the RIC. Other instruments like ISIN, Tickets etc can be converted to RIC's first as described in this discussion.

Ziye

https://community.developers.refinitiv.com/discussion/comment/127156#Comment_127156

Got it — RICs are the default expected identifiers for the get_data() function.

However, in my testing, I’ve been able to successfully retrieve correct results using PermIDs in the universe parameter.

Just to clarify, is this officially supported by LSEG? Looking forward to hearing from you.

Gurpreet

https://community.developers.refinitiv.com/discussion/comment/127157#Comment_127157

The API call can use almost every identifier except tickers. You can use RIC, ISIN, CUSIP or PERM_ID etc with the get_data API calls.

Jirapongse

@Ziye

As far as I know, the function supports PermIDs.

It uses the same backend as the @RDP .Data function in LSEG Workspace Excel.

To confirm whether the @RDP .Data function supports PermIDs, you may need to contact the product team through LSEG Support.

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