Telefónica Steps Back from German Data Launch

Telefónica subsidiary O2 Germany has apparently stepped back from plans to sell anonymous customer location data to the country's retailers, after strong concern from the German government about consumer privacy. It is of course the home turf of its insight partner, GfK.

Telefónica announced just three weeks ago that it was opening a 'Dynamic Insights' practice in partnership with GfK, offering anonymised and aggregated mobile network data to companies and public sector organisations worldwide, and beginning in in Germany, the UK and Brazil.

Telefónica - which also owns Movistar and Vivo - had announced 'Smart Steps', the first in a number of tailored products based on its huge data sets and allowing users to analyse the factors which influence the number of people visiting a location at any time, and thereby target localised offerings, plan launches and so on. The product was also mooted as a way for town councils to measure footfall and plan policy in areas such as car parking, farmers markets and late night shopping. GfK is adding its marketing science expertise to the mix, and analytics products for fraud protection and 'Smart City' technology including traffic management are also said to be in development.

Following the latest decision, a company spokesperson told www.teltarif.de , 'Privacy and customer satisfaction is a top priority for Telefonica, and after feedback from our customers we have now decided not to introduce Smart Steps in Germany.'

Trials of Smart Steps are reportedly underway in the UK for a launch this month. Web sites: www.telefonica.com and www.gfk.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.