IntelliOne, an Atlanta- and Toronto-based traffic-information firm, announced a few days ago that it has an agreement with Rogers Wireless to convert the phone company’s cellphone data into a sort of real-time traffic congestion map, which users can tap into to determine exactly how long it will take to get from point A to point B.

The IntelliOne traffic map service is one in a host of tools the company plans to roll out in the near future through Rogers. Using similar technology, parents will also be able to keep tabs on their children by checking the location of their cellphones: a mix of prudent parent and Big Brother. Other wireless companies have offered similar services, but usually using GPS technology. The IntelliOne service works on virtually all cellphones, not just GPS-enabled ones, Mr. Tapscott said.

Mr. Tapscott said that before mobile-phone information reaches IntelliOne’s computers, all personal identifying information has been stripped off - all the company knows is that a mobile phone is at a certain location moving at a certain speed. Because the amount of data IntelliOne’s computers look at is so huge, the information is deleted every 24 hours at most. The privacy onus is largely on Rogers, which will filter out the personal data before information is passed on to IntelliOne.

“There have been questions like, what if the police want to know,” Mr. Tapscott said. “[IntelliOne doesn't] have the info to give them.”Source http://www.theglobeandmail.com