AT&T Eyes Big Data Revenues

AT&T Inc. has unveiled plans to make money from the mountain of subscriber data it holds in its back-office systems.

The carrier has announced its intention to update its customer privacy policy so that it can aggregate customer data that can then be sold to advertisers and marketing firms.

The details of the new privacy policy, which was first spotted by Fierce Wireless, are here.

Not surprisingly, especially so soon after the revelations of National Security Agency (NSA) snooping, AT&T is stressing the privacy controls inherent in its policy, which covers fixed as well as mobile customers -- "We know our customers care about privacy just as we do ... We don't sell your personal information..." the carrier notes. (See Prism in a Big Data World.)

With all CSPs looking for new revenue streams and seeking ways to generate cash from their vast volumes of network and subscriber data, AT&T will be just one of many that will be making such announcements in the coming years. After all, they're not investing in Big Data platforms and analytics tools for fun and they've all seen how the Web services giants, such as Google and Facebook, have turned user data into cash. (See That Big Data Sinking Feeling.)

Apple Inc., meanwhile, is an old hand at this game. (See Marketers Slam Apple's Privacy Invasion.)

AT&T isn't the first operator to go down this route, of course: Verizon Wireless formed its Precision Market Insights team in 2012, following an update to its own privacy policy.

China Unicom Ltd., too, has been putting its subscriber data to work. (See The Golden Touch of Data Assets: Precision Operation.)

Industry analysts have long noted that CSPs have a richer set of information than their Web services rivals and need to find ways to generate new revenues from that advantage: AT&T's move is evidence that CSPs might now be gaining confidence about the business strategies they're developing around the Big Data trend.

As we noted earlier this year, the CSPs have a lot to figure out when it comes to Big Data strategies, but they can't afford to procrastinate for too long. (See The Big Data Challenge: 10 Tips for Telcos.)

-- Ray Le Maistre, Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading