Wayne’s Definition of a Data Product

With real-world products in mind, Wayne created what he admits is a somewhat unorthodox definition of a data product, at least compared he’s heard discussed in the industry. For Wayne, a data product is a data asset that has all the characteristics of something that can be bought and sold by people you don’t know.” (See figure 1.)

In other words, a data product involves a transaction, even if the transaction involves no exchange of money—i.e., the data product freely given and received. A data product also exhibits the same five characteristics of real-world products described above: they are standardized, packaged, shoppable, deliverable, and returnable. 

Finally, a data product is found in a data store, which gives it some of the characteristics defined above. It’s true not all data products will be in data stores or marketplaces, but you can guarantee that a data asset published to a data marketplace is a data product.