An infomediary works as a personal agent on behalf of consumers to help them take control over information gathered about them for use by marketers and advertisers. The concept of the infomediary was first suggested by McKinsey consultants and professors John Hagel III, and Marc Singer in their book NetWorth.[1]
Infomediaries operate on the assumption that personal information is the property of the individual described, not necessarily the property of the one who gathers it. The infomediary business model recognizes that there is value in this personal data and the infomediary seeks to act as a trusted agent, providing the opportunity and means for clients to monetize and profit from their own information profiles.[2]
One of the first focused implementations of the infomediary concept was an online advertising company called AllAdvantage.[3]