As the information landscape expands with all kinds of Big Data, businesses are searching for ways to unite their traditional analytics with this new source of insight. One ambitious approach involves federating access to multiple data sources, even across various operating systems. The idea is to take analytic processing to the data, then intelligently assemble the results for a business user. 

Could this be the long-awaited alternative to data virtualization? Register for this episode of The Briefing Room to hear veteran Analyst Robin Bloor explain how federated access to data sources can pave the way for a truly integrated data fabric.  

What's the biggest challenge with Big Data so far? By and large, it's the big pain in delivering the right data in a timely fashion, and in a way that decision-makers can easily use. That's quickly changing because of the tremendous demand for tools that even non-technical business users can effectively employ. Capabilities are being designed by software vendors large and small, to provide easier access and more intuitive ways for working with Big Data. Even still, the effort to make Big Data useful is very much a work in progress. Register for this episode of The Briefing Room to hear veteran Analyst John Myers of EMA explain why Big Data poses challenges and opportunities for professionals looking to better understand their markets, prospects and customers.