We hear the word “crisis” a lot these days. A phenomenon of our age is that issues are transformed into crises, and many crises are transformed into existential threats. Think about the way we looked at online harms and screen time for children. Just a year or two ago, the rage was the claim that… Read More
Last week, a federal judge dismissed the Federal Trade Commission’s monopoly lawsuit against Facebook, concluding that the agency hadn’t made a sufficiently clear case that the social media giant controlled the market in a monopolistic way. At the same time, Amazon has demanded that FTC Chair Lina Khan recuse herself from any antitrust investigation into… Read More
Last time, we talked about the passage of the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), a ballot referendum that expands and enhances the scope and consequences of CCPA. Today, we’ll look a little deeper into why CPRA is such a big deal, and also why it may simultaneously be the cause of its own undoing. When… Read More
The mutually beneficial data partnership may sound like a unicorn, but it is actually quite common. Market forces drive these partnerships for one of three reasons: shared clients, operational teams, and marketing. This contrasts with innovator partnerships, which are driven by sales opportunities, product innovation and channel distribution. Mutually beneficial partnerships tend to between partners… Read More
Regular readers of our blog will be familiar with our frequent suggestion that you should deploy data review teams and use subject matter experts to come up with clever solutions to data-based problems. “That’s all well and good,” you might say, “for companies that have dedicated staff for working only on data problems or massive… Read More
Everybody loves a fad. You can pinpoint someone’s generation better than carbon dating by asking them what their favorite toys and gadgets were as a kid. Tamagotchi and pogs? You were born around 1988, weren’t you? Coleco Electronic Quarterback and Garanimals? Well well, an early X-er. A fad is cultural currency and social lubricant at… Read More
Zoom, the videoconferencing platform on everyone’s lips this month, has had an roller coaster of a first quarter. As remote working became the norm for hundreds of millions, the company rapidly emerged as a favorite in the United States, where its simplicity and video quality made it stand out from competitors. Its daily usage swelled… Read More
We’ve spent a lot of time talking about data partnerships because we believe in their potential as vehicles for growth, success, and innovation. But sometimes it’s valuable to lay out particular versions of those partnerships to give you an idea of what data you can deploy and how it can be valuable. Use this discussion… Read More
One of the biggest concerns we have when we talk to clients about how to create data partnerships is the security and protection of data. We don’t mean cybersecurity and the literal safeguarding of information, though that’s undoubtedly essential too. Instead, we’re talking about ensuring that datasets are used only as appropriate, are kept within… Read More
There is an unconventional data partnership structure based around controlling the data that others have about you. Remember, most businesses gather datasets from their operations. However, each record of those datasets is usually referencing one particular entity, like a person or a business or a product. There is an entire partnership structure around the entities… Read More
Jerry Seinfeld used to do a bit where he noted that the number one fear most people have is speaking in public, followed in second place by the fear of death. “That means that, if given a choice of what to do at a funeral, most people would rather be in the casket than giving… Read More
We’ve already spent some time discussing the kind of partnerships where a small, innovative firm wants to partner with a larger one to create new value and drive growth. Many times, this is how the smaller business gets its foot in the door, and (together, perhaps, with a channel agreement) first is able to get… Read More
When you’re a lawyer and you write about truth, you’re basically asking to be insulted because….you know….you’re a lawyer. It’s true, some of my fellow legal professionals have occasionally had a less than intimate connection with the truth, but, in general, even the best lawyers squint their eyes and look wary when someone talks about… Read More
This week, we’ve explored how you can use channel partnerships to develop your data products, make your brand recognizable, and leverage the skill sets of other companies to drive growth. Affiliate partnerships give you the benefit of finding new customers and supplementing your areas of weaker (or at least less strong) competency. Reseller partnerships broadcast… Read More
On Monday, we talked about how to structure channel data partnerships, particularly in the context of affiliates. Affiliate partnerships are a great way to ensure that your data reaches the widest possible audience, relying on the affiliate’s access to potential customers. They are, in effect, a force multiplier for your data, broadcasting it to a… Read More
Although there’s no shortage of media coverage of data as a valuable asset and data partnerships as an important part of nearly every business transaction, there’s precious little explanation of exactly how data fits into business beyond its role as raw material. While it’s probably easier to follow the “data as oil” line of thinking,… Read More
To me, the most meaningful meme of this year was “OK, Boomer” (Baby Yoda was a non-event, don’t @ me). It not only perfectly captures the very real, politically potent generational conflict going on right now, but it also reflects how completely ignored Generation X is in our current culture wars. (I feel no guilt… Read More
Happy Boxing Day from everyone at Ward PLLC. We hope that you’re all having an enjoyable, and suitably private, holiday season. For many people, today is a day of quiet, calm, reflection, relaxation, and desperately trying to find out if you can get cash refunds from Restoration Hardware for the gifts your in-laws inexplicably decided… Read More
Like all right-thinking people, I love Marvin Gaye’s rendition of I Heard it Through the Grapevine — ironic though it may be that a privacy lawyer would enjoy a song about unauthorized release of sensitive personal data. You’re probably hearing it in your head right now, the bassline kicking in and maybe thinking about times… Read More
You may recall that we made some predictions way back in January about what would happen in privacy, privacy law, and data partnerships over the course of 2019. Well, we believe in accountability, and so it’s time to check out how well we did. There’s a reason that most people don’t reflect on their New… Read More