Researchers at Swarthmore’s marketing technology consultancy, Raab Associates, have predicted that the Customer Data Platform market will reach $1 billion by 2019, writes Dom Nicastro for CMS Wire.

The company has come to this conclusion after in-depth analysis of 27 vendors that generated more than $300 million in revenue last year. The researchers have included their findings as part of the new Customer Platform Industry Profile report released last week by the Customer Data Platform Institute.

CDPs are a useful tool for marketers as they allow them to build unified customer databases that can be accessed by other systems. This gives them better control over the data by providing real-time access to analytics, reporting, and messaging.

According to David Raab, principal of Raab Associates and CEO of the Customer Data Platform Institute, this report is the first of its kind, as it combines public and private data. It also shows that total funding for CDP vendors already exceeds $700 million.

“I had no idea the number was going to be that big,” said Raab.

Read more about the findings of Raab Associates from CMS Wire by clicking here.