"Data is the new oil."

You've probably heard this phrase, spoken as if it were the dogma of our times.

I've seen it in presentations. I've heard it while I've been giving presentations. "Data is the new oil" nods someone, sagely, while I make an unrelated point. Case closed.

When Clive Humby made this statement, in 2006, he also said: "Oil is valuable, but if unrefined it canno…