Telefónica and Wibson partner to trial blockchain-based personal data marketplace

Spanish telecom giant Telefónica has partnered with Wibson, a blockchain-based consumer data marketplace, to trial a data verification capability that validates the authenticity of consumer data in its system.

Established in October of 2017, Wibson is a project from the team behind Grandata that aims to create a trusted universal data platform that maximizes value for both individuals and companies. It is backed by DGG Capital, Kenetic Capital, and Telefónica’s investment arm, Wayra, among other industry-leading investors.

Wibson has created a decentralized, blockchain-based personal-data marketplace that provides infrastructure and financial incentives for individuals to securely sell private information directly to data buyers, without sacrificing personal privacy. Consumers decide when and to whom they sell their data based on transparent, market-driven offers that clearly outline the data requested, price, and intended use.

The trial will initially focus on users of Movistar, a major telecommunications brand owned by Telefónica, in Uruguay. Telefónica will serve as a notary, helping to verify Movistar subscriber status for consumers selling data through the Wibson marketplace.

“One of Wibson’s primary aims is to provide consumers with an easy way to be rewarded for the personal data they create every day. The notary feature ensures that data in the Wibson marketplace is always authentic, recent, and high quality. This is a big improvement from the way that traditional marketplaces and aggregators handle personal data today,” Wibson CEO and Co-founder Mat Travizano said. “

Gonzalo Martin-Villa, Chief Innovation Officer of the Telefónica Group, said that blockchain technology not only allows working with new business models related to personal data, but also gives the “opportunity to add a trust layer to operations and design new disruptive services.”

The Wibson token went live with the Wibson marketplace launch in October 2018 and has already supported more than 100,000 data transactions. To date, more than one million WIBs have been used in such transactions by the Wibson community.