Nowadays the use of big data analytics has grown tremendously in different industries. In the mobility space, big data provides a veritable bonanza of likely benefits in your daily life. So much mobility data is amassed every day that it is collectively called big data.
All the more, you should know the basics of mobility data and identify some of its impact on your life. 2.5 quintillion bytes per day are too much to ignore in a world that is only getting more connected. In this post, we would like to focus on the beneficial impacts of mobility data.
Defining Mobility Data
Mobility data refers to the data about a geographic location that you produce passively from a gadget in the course of your normal activities, but eventually can aggregate many more types of data (time, speed, error identification, surroundings,etc).
Mobility data is most popularly provided by telecommunications companies because they possess extensive network coverage and have portable cellular devices. There are also other sources of mobility data, such as in-device Bluetooth and geographic positioning service technology (GPS) methods.
Vehicle GPS data gives the location of vehicles like ships, aircraft, and cars, but it is also applicable to bicycles, scooters or public transportation. It is generated from either hardware embedded in the vehicle or a portable device within the vehicle.
Bluetooth is designed for small distance wireless communication between gadgets. Bluetooth devices can help in determining the time and duration of the interaction.
Mobility Data in Our Daily Lives
With more and more businesses going online, the impact of mobility data in our lives is getting deeper. To begin with, human mobility data is growing in popularity as a marketing tool, especially for identifying opportunities and macro trends. Companies can get this data in many ways, but generally they already are obtaining the data but they just have no clue on how to process data and make it useful.
Another way of obtaining this data is partnering with a mobility company such as Net4things that can offer different options in building a cross-mobility platform. In this way a company is able to collect data, and take advantage of it with the confidence and security of having a mobility expert behind it. In other words, all the benefits without the need to set up a new division in the company, no matter the industry your company belongs to.
Finally, mobility data is proving to be important for generating competitive intelligence for many companies. Investors are continually applying mobility data to target their preferences and possible buyers and increase business revenue.
Cleary, Mobility Data is Rampant, But Who Controls It?
The high speed of production and storage of mobility data means we are at a point of no return: The data is transforming our lives like never before.
Like every other innovation ahead of it, the mobility data field has teething problems, especially from the ethical angle. No doubt; privacy of personal data during the collection and subsequent handling of mobility data is a challenge.
Much of the big data under the custody of companies is personal, meaning that the companies may need to adhere to strict government regulations and industry standards when handling the data.
It is encouraging to note that companies are striving to comply with the requirements. This compliance is a work-in-progress thing because each of the popular methods has pros and cons. Here are some of these methods:
- Extrapolation: It is effective in preserving privacy, although it is associated with lost certainty
- Encryption: Good for data in transit and at rest
- Aggregation Algorithms: Anonymity of persons is the mainstay of this method
- Path Obfuscation: Prevents re-inference for enhanced privacy, but could lower accuracy
Are you looking to use mobility data positively?
Many types of businesses are aware of the importance of the effective application of mobility data and are progressively searching for analysts for guidance. The best analysts use advanced methods and tools to derive meaning from piles of data. They help companies and businesses to not only take particular strategic paths but also use the data wisely.
Net4things is composed of well-trained and experienced professionals who work in unison to help businesses to make their data actionable.
Contact us today so we can examine how mobility data can impact various facets of your life and business.