What’s All That Data Worth?

What groceries you buy, what Facebook posts you “like” and how you use GPS in your car: Companies are building their entire businesses around the collection and sale of such data. The problem is that no one really knows what all that information is worth.

Data isn’t a physical asset like a factory or cash, and there aren’t any official guidelines for assessing its value. As more companies traffic in information and use big-data analytic tools to find ways to generate revenue, the lack of standards for valuing data leaves a widening gap in our understanding of the modern business world.