The Big Data Advantage
AT&T has started to engage its customers about the data it’s collecting and sharing by issuing an updated privacy policy, which was explained in detail in a June 28 blog post by Bob Quinn, the company’s senior VP, chief privacy officer and head of its federal regulatory group.
“First, we have tried to make it easier for our customers to understand the data we collect, how we use it and how we protect it,” he wrote. “Second, we have structured our policy in a manner that provides very straightforward consumer controls over the data we obtain from you or through your use of our services, websites and applications. Many of these changes are derived from customer research in which we asked customers how they want to hear about these topics.”
Quinn stated that AT&T evaluates customer data using “three large contexts”: “Providing You Service and Improving Our Network and Services,” “Personal Information” and “Aggregate and Anonymous Data.” The CSP won’t disclose your personal information without your permission, and it’s willing to offer something in return for that permission via a mobile app called AT&T Alerts.
“It provides you great discounts on AT&T and AT&T partner products and services,” Quinn wrote. “It might send you a coupon if you happen to be near one of our partner retailers. But you have to sign up for AT&T Alerts to get the service. In other words, we use your personal information for this program only if you tell us in advance that you want us to do that.”
AT&T is also making the appeal for the use of aggregate data as a means to improve communities as well as the overall customer experience. But, judging by Coleman Parkes’s findings for Amdocs, that’s not likely to be an effective plea to customers who say they want something in return for their data currency.
“In the Internet world, aggregate and anonymous data can be used by retailers, advertisers and marketing companies to figure out what consumers want in a particular area,” Quinn added in his pitch for corporate access to anonymous user data. “You benefit by having better products available and seeing advertising more relevant to your particular consumer segment.”
Verizon, which has come under fire for its reported collusion with the US government to spy on its customers, is one of the industry’s leaders when it comes to Big Data. Torod Neptune, vice president of corporate communications for Verizon Wireless, explained on the company’s website last October that the data it collects for advertisers is strictly anonymous and that only mailing addresses and demographic information are tracked, not location data.
“None of the data that is used in this program is personally identifiable, and we do not sell raw data to third parties,” he wrote. “We are not selling your personal data.”
The bargain Verizon is pitching to its customers is also light on tangible benefits, unless you consider being bombarded with targeted advertising a plus. “When you use your wireless device, you often see ads on websites and apps,” Neptune wrote. “Relevant mobile advertising will help brands tailor the type of advertising you see on your mobile phone.”
The Big Data economy is here, and success will be defined by the relationships that service providers are able to foster with their customers. The more that CSPs can woo their customers, the more willing those customers will be to let CSPs have their way with their personal data.
The good news is that what customers want is simple: clear communication about what will happen to their data, and a real value proposition that acknowledges how much revenue their service provider can potentially generate with their personal information. The CSPs that are deft enough to get it right will enjoy a mutually beneficial arrangement with their customers that will keep them coming back for more.
