Why Data Is *Not* the New Oil and Data Marketplaces Have Failed Us
<p>The phrase “<em>data is the new oil</em>” was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clive_Humby" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">coined by Clive Humby in 2006</a> and has been widely parroted since. However, the analogy holds merit in only a few aspects (e.g. the value of both usually increases with refinement) and data’s broader economic impact has been muted outside of a select few tech and finance companies. But the actual differences between oil and data are fundamental.</p>
<p>Most notably, oil is a commodity. Its quality is standardized and measurable, which makes oil from different sources substitutes (in economic terms it is a “homogenous good”). It is ubiquitous and has a well established price. Not least, if you have a barrel of oil, you can’t simply make a copy to produce another — oil is a limited resource that has to be pulled from the ground.</p>
<p><a href="https://towardsdatascience.com/why-data-is-not-the-new-oil-and-data-marketplaces-have-failed-us-b42dd87a0ba0"><strong>Learn More</strong></a></p>