Today's companies are dealing with an avalanche of data from social media, search, and sensor as well as from traditional sources. In 2012,the amount of digital information generated is expected to reach 988 exabytes, which is the equivalent to a stack of books from the sun to the planet Pluto and back. Marking sense of "bid data" has become one of the primary challenges for corporations of all shapes and sizes, but it also represents new opportunuties. How are companies currently taking advantage of big data opportunities?