Bright Data (previously as Luminati Networks), is a global technology company that offers web data collection and proxy services to B2B companies. Since 2018, the CEO of Bright Data is Or Lenchner.[2][3]
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Data collection and proxy services |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Headquarters | Tel Aviv, |
Key people | Or Lenchner (CEO) |
Number of employees | 201-500[1] |
| Website | brightdata |
History
editThe company was founded under the name Luminati Networks as a division of the Hola VPN company in 2014.[4] In 2017, Luminati Networks was sold separately from Hola to EMK Capital, a private investment fund from London, at a value of approximately 200 million dollars.[5][6][7] In March 2021, Luminati Networks was renamed to Bright Data.[8]
In May 2021, Bright Data founded an organization called The Bright Initiative with the aim of making data available at no cost to non-profits, organizations and research bodies. The organization serves more than 700 companies, including 300 academic institutions.[9][10]
In September 2022, the company acquired the Israeli start-up Market Beyond, which works in the analysis of e-commerce data based on artificial intelligence.[11][12]
In June 2023, Bright Data joined the Amazon Web Services ISV Accelerate program.[13][14]
In July, X Corp, formerly known as Twitter, sued Bright Data for scraping data from Twitter, violating its terms of service.[15][16] This followed a similar lawsuit by Meta Platforms against Bright Data for data harvesting from Facebook and Instagram in January of the same year.[17] Bright Data countersued, asserting its commitment to making public data accessible, claiming legality in its web data collection practices.[18][19][20]
In January 2024, Bright Data won a legal dispute with Meta. A federal judge in San Francisco declared that Bright Data did not breach Meta's terms of use by scraping data from Facebook and Instagram, consequently denying Meta's request for summary judgment on claims of contract breach.[21][22][23] This court decision in favor of Bright Data’s data scraping approach marks a significant moment in the ongoing debate over public access to web data, reinforcing the freedom of access to public web data for anyone.[24]
At the same time, Bright Data, in collaboration with the Molly Rose Foundation charity, released a research report titled "Preventable yet Pervasive: The Prevalence and Characteristics of Harmful Content, Including Suicide and Self-Harm Material, on Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest." This study provided insights into the extent and nature of harmful content on these social media platforms.[25]
In May 2024, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by X Corp. (formerly Twitter) against Bright Data, ruling that the company did not violate X's terms of service or copyright by scraping publicly accessible data.[26] The judge emphasized that such scraping practices are generally legal and that restricting them could lead to information monopolies,[27] and highlighted that X's concerns were more about financial compensation than protecting user privacy.[28]
References
edit- ^ "Bright Data News, Hiring, Layoffs, Competitors, CEO, Fundraising Insights". RivalSense. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ Birch, Kate (2022-10-27). "Meet the CEO: Bright Data CEO Or Lenchner". businesschief.asia. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Or Lenchner | CEO - Bright Data (Formerly Luminati Networks)". Forbes Technology Council. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ אביגד, דורון (2023-01-07). "המנכ"ל שניהל בגיל 14 ומתנגד ללימודים אקדמיים ולישיבות ארוכות". Globes. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ רבט, הגר (2017-08-10). "EMK קונה חטיבה של Hola Networks בכ-200 מיליון דולר". כלכליסט - www.calcalist.co.il. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "EMK buys stake in Luminati for nearly $200m". Globes. 2017-10-08. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "EMK Capital Acquires a Majority Stake in Luminati". NOAH Advisors. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Prosser, Chris (2021-03-25). "Luminati Networks is Now Bright Data - What Changes Rebranded as "Bright"?". Private Proxy Reviews. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Bright Data 2023 Impact Report Highlights the Use of Public Web Data for Public Good". Yahoo Finance. 2023-05-11. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Spiro, James (2021-05-23). "Israel's Bright Data to help UK with its national data strategy". CTECH - www.calcalistech.com. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Bright Data to Launch Bright Insights, with the Acquisition of Top eCommerce Digital Analytics Provider Market Beyond". September 12, 2022. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Bright Data acquires eCommerce insights provider Market Beyond for tens of millions of dollars". ctech. 2022-09-12. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Bright Data Joins AWS ISV Accelerate Program, Adding Web-Data-Collection Capabilities to the AWS Cloud". CIO Influence. 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Bright Data Joins AWS ISV Accelerate Program, Adding Web-Data-Collection Capabilities to the AWS Cloud". Yahoo Finance. 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Elon Musk's X Corp. Sues Israeli Company Over Data Scraping". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Newman, Marissa (February 2, 2023). "Meta Was Scraping Sites for Years While Fighting the Practice". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Documents show Meta paid for data scraping despite years of denouncing it". Engadget. 2023-02-02. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Newman, Marissa (June 5, 2023). "Bright Data Accused of Scraping Minors' Information From Instagram". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Wrobel, Sharon (27 July 2023). "Musk's X Corp sues Israel's Bright Data for scraping data". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Israeli firm dismisses privacy concerns in data scraping controversy". www.israelhayom.com. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Gennaro, Michael (January 23, 2024). "Federal judge rules against Meta in data scraping case". Courthouse News Service. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Perez, Sarah (2024-01-24). "Court rules in favor of a web scraper, Bright Data, which Meta had used and then sued". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Meta Fails to Beat Data Firm in Facebook, Instagram Scraping Row". Bloomberg Law. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ "Court rules against Meta in Bright Data scraping case". ctech. 2024-01-25. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Spotlight (2023-11-30). "The Research Brief: Why harmful social media content needs stronger regulation". The New Statesman. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
- ^ Stempel, Jonathan (2024-05-10). "Musk's X Corp loses lawsuit against Israeli data-scraping company". Reuters.
- ^ Field, Lora Kolodny,Hayden (2024-05-10). "Elon Musk's X loses lawsuit against Bright Data over data scraping". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Musk's X Loses Suit Seeking to Stop Israeli Firm's Data Scraping". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2024-05-16.