the SEC already makes filing data available in machine readable format - it's called XBRL. I don't think all companies are on it now, but there's a mandate that will force all companies to eventually do it
Not back to 1996 they don't (the first year of online SEC filings) which for those of us interested in doing panel studies we'd love to have. You can purchase it for ~$20,000 for a small institution, I'm not sure what an individual license would run.
It's a shame that one would have to pay such a large amount for such a data set. Let's not forget that the SEC exists largely to protect investors. Somehow, today's SEC framework/accounting rules seem to favor the filers of financial information rather than the users of financial information. This is a fundamental problem of the system today.
