• by Joe Mandese , June 9, 2009

That was the best Tobaccowalism of the day, if you ask me. It was delivered, of course, by Denuo chief Rishad Tobaccowala, who was, of course, referring to the uber controversial industry debate over “who owns the data.” You know the one that’s been simmering below the surface, but reached some high topography when WPP Group invoked some new stringent data ownership clauses in the new terms and conditions of its online advertising contracts.

“Who owns the data,” Tobaccowala repeated? “I don’t know,” he said, “but I’ll give you this, who the hell cares? I don’t care who owns it. I just want to access it.”

The openness and fluidity of that data flow is key to the success of everyone in the online marketing world, and the constriction of it, would stifle the overall industry’s growth, he said, invoking the online travel and booking industry as an example.

Imagining a trip booked through Travelocity, Tobaccowala said, “Think of all the data that comes together when I plan a trip. What if American Airliens and Hyatt said, ‘This is my data.’”