I’ve spent a lot of time recently talking to Customer Data Platform vendors, or companies that looked like they might be. One that sits right on the border is Reltio, which fits the CDP criteria* but goes beyond customer data to all types of enterprise information. That puts it more in the realm of Master Data Management.

Acxiom has added self-service access to its massive Audience Cloud database of cross-channel customer data, Marketers can specify segments, set up test groups, and distribute audiences to their own systems or to advertisers through Acxiom’s LiveRamp partner network.  It’s just another step in making third party data more widely and easily available.

Like the determined optimist who tells his boss the factory is on fire by reporting they’ll soon be able to update their equipment, let’s find some silver linings in a batch of gloomy surveys today, Dear Reader.  We’ll start with this Fivetran report, which finds that 85% of data leaders say their company has lost money by basing decisions on bad data, and 66% believe their C-suite can’t tell when that happens.  The bright side is there’s lots of room for improvement.