Chapter 5 Conclusion Data is Changing the World As consumers, data is helping us build more where the Datasphere meets the physical world, and deeper connections, and to access the core remains the heart of the Datasphere products and services more quickly and easily, gathering data from the edges and endpoints, at the time and place of our choosing. We can processing and archiving it, and promulgating it now walk into a store and walk out with our back for consumption by end users, including purchases, leaving our transaction record (and machines and things – and the cloud is a vital perhaps facial image) as a digital trail, but never part of this core. having to pull out a credit card or cash. Companies looking to be relevant between now As businesses, data is helping us reach new and 2025 will need to understand the role data markets, better serve existing customers, plays in their organization and how the streamline operations, and monetize raw and Datasphere will evolve during that period. They analyzed data. If reported global intangible will need to embrace their role as data assets of companies are more than $200 trillion guardians, leverage the cloud, and take a global dollars*, what must – and will – the value of approach to their data. Different industries have unreported data assets be? Data is an different levels of data maturity, so companies intangible asset and underpins most other should review the IDC DATCON index reports to intangible assets like patents and goodwill. learn where they stand relative to their industry Bytes can be made more valuable by index and what they need to do to not just surrounding them with security, leveraging survive – but more importantly to thrive – in them in AI, or using them to cure diseases. their own Datasphere. Nevertheless, there is a cost associated with data: purchasing, maintaining, and protecting storage, as well as the cost of losing data or having sensitive data fall into the hands of a competitor or hacker. The real value of data is out there, and companies are just finding out Data is that data has real worth. Those businesses first helping us reach through the gateway of digital transformation will be the first to find out just how valuable new markets, better their data is. serve existing customers, The Global Datasphere is large and complex, streamline operations, and with key interdependencies between core, edge, monetize raw and and endpoints. While the edge and endpoints will continue to play a critical role as the place analyzed data. * Source: IDC’s Intangible Asset Market Value Study, 2018 IDC White Paper I Doc# US44413318 I November 2018 The Digitization of the World – From Edge to Core I 26