From 2011 to 2012 Joel Gurin served as chair of the White House Task Force on Smart Disclosure, using Open Data to help consumers make informed choices on healthcare, financial services, education, and energy. An awardwinning science journalist, he is currently senior advisor at the GovLab at New York University. Gurin is the former editorial director and executive vice president of Consumer Reports and the former chief of the consumer bureau of the Federal Communications Commission.

What happens when Big Data is made open to YOU?

Discover how Open Data can benefit you, your business, and your brand

“Open Data Now is an instant classic—essential reading.” --Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence and Focus

What is Open Data? Open Data is the world's greatest free resource--unprecedented access to thousands of databases--and it is one of the most revolutionary developments since the Information Age began. Combining two major trends--the exponential growth of digital data and the emerging culture of disclosure and transparency--Open Data gives you and your business full access to information that has never been available to the average person until now. Unlike most Big Data, Open Data is transparent, accessible, and reusable in ways that give it the power to transform business, government, and society.

Open Data Now is an essential guide to understanding all kinds of open databases--business, government, science, technology, retail, social media, and more--and using those resources to your best advantage. You'll learn how to tap crowds for fast innovation, conduct research through open collaboration, and manage and market your business in a transparent marketplace.

Open Data is open for business--and the opportunities are as big and boundless as the Internet itself. This powerful, practical book shows you how to harness the power of Open Data in a variety of applications:

HOT STARTUPS: turn government data into profitable ventures

SAVVY MARKETING: understand how reputational data drives your brand

DATA-DRIVEN INVESTING: apply new tools for business analysis

CONSUMER IN FORMATION: connect with your customers using smart disclosure

GREEN BUSINESS: use data to bet on sustainable companies

FAST R&D: turn the online world into your research lab

NEW OPPORTUNITIES: explore open fields for new businesses

Whether you're a marketing professional who wants to stay on top of what's trending, a budding entrepreneur with a billion-dollar idea and limited resources, or a struggling business owner trying to stay competitive in a changing global market--or if you just want to understand the cutting edge of information technology--Open Data Now offers a wealth of big ideas, strategies, and techniques that wouldn’t have been possible before Open Data leveled the playing field.

The revolution is here and it's now. It's Open Data Now.

PRAISE FOR OPEN DATA NOW

"In Open Data Now, Joel Gurin presents a strategy for success in the coming era of massive data. Open Data gives business unprecedented power to understand customers and earn their trust. Any organization that wants to connect with the people it serves needs these lessons. Open Data Now is an instant classic—essential reading for entrepreneurs, small business owners, corporate executives, or anyone who needs to understand this new information reality." -- Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence and Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence

"Data is the new oil of the Internet, yet much of it is locked up because of habits inherited from the days of index cards and filing cabinets. In Open Data Now, Joel Gurin, who lives at the epicenter of this new data-driven world, describes how these hidden resources can be transformed into public wealth and vibrant commerce, and gives us a road map for making it happen. This book will convert you to a new way of thinking about data and open your eyes to huge new possibilities." -- Alex "Sandy" Pentland, Director, MIT Media Lab Entrepreneurship Program

"This compelling and cutting-edge book is a must-read for anyone following the panoply of issues swirling around personal and public data." -- Josh Gottheimer, General Manager, Strategic Initiatives and Operations, Microsoft

"Open Data is one of the most important ways in which society can tap information, extract new economic value, and promote government transparency. Joel Gurin has used his wide-ranging expertise to identify the landmarks--and the landmines--in this critical issue of global significance." -- Viktor Mayer-Schonberger and Kenneth Cukier, coauthors of Big Data

"Joel Gurin is a consumer advocate and big thinker. His insights into the new world of data mining and how it might change our lives give us a very important glimpse into what's to come in a society where data greases the wheels of its progress and problems." -- Bill Baker, President Emeritus, Educational Broadcasting Corporation