Data is now the fuel that drives business – identifying potential markets, shaping new products and targeting consumers. To understand where we may be heading next, Significance has partnered with Impact, the magazine of the Market Research Society, to jointly publish a series exploring the past, present and future of the data economy. This third part tells the story of the evolution of social media, which created rich and detailed data sources and positioned tech giants as data economies in their own right. By Timandra Harkness This third part of our “History of the Data Economy” series tells the story of the evolution of social media, which created rich and detailed data sources and positioned tech giants as data economies in their own right. By Timandra Harkness