Nokia Is Letting Consumers Monetize Their Data with Blockchain

Blockchain data platform Streamr is partnering with Finnish telecom giant Nokia and California software company OSIsoft to allow mobile customers to monetize their user data and make purchases.

Chief executive Henri Pihkala announced the partnerships at CoinDesk's Consensus 2018 conference Wednesday, while also conducting a live launch of its real-time data marketplace, through which users can provide and subscribe to real-time data streams.

He said in a statement that "today marks a hugely significant day in Streamr's history, not only showcasing our platform to the world on-stage at Consensus but announcing two stellar partnerships."

The partnership with Nokia will see Nokia's Kuha base stations integrate with Streamr's data marketplace, allowing Nokia customers to both monetize their user data and purchase streams from Internet of Things devices.

"We recognize a growing movement of empowered mobile customers who want to control and monetize their own data," Nokia's radio system evolution lead Martti Ylikoski, said in a statement, adding, "our partnership with Streamr reflects our firm belief in the platform."

Participants buy and sell real-time data streams through ethereum smart contracts. Buyers and sellers use an ERC-20 token called DATAcoin.

The partnership with OSIsoft will see the firm's enterprise customers gain the ability to earn money for their operations data.

Ealier in May, Streamr announced another partnership, with Hewlett Packard Enterprise, to use the Streamr Engine - a data aggregator and analytics tool - to collect data feeds from an Audi Q2.