New York-based data technology vendor CodeStreet is rolling out the second phase of its Market Data Integrator product, which will enable Bloomberg users to publish proprietary data across the Bloomberg terminal network.

The first iteration of the product, which was released this summer, enabled users to publish their own datasets to other Bloomberg users on the same desk or within the same firm (IMD, June 22). The new version, which CodeStreet is now rolling out to clients on a case-by-case basis, allows users to publish any internal content-from over-the-counter prices in a database or spreadsheet to research reports in PDF or other file formats-via Bloomberg, using the terminals' existing permissioning controls.

"This is potentially the simplest approach to distributing pricing... to all venues required. By publishing seamlessly to Bloomberg, a firm can expand its footprint," says Howard Pein, chief executive of CodeStreet. "There are lots of reasons for publishing something internally, but infinitely more reasons for publishing something more widely-especially between the sell side and the buy side."

Pein says the product gives smaller desks and firms without expensive contributions technology infrastructures the ability to expand the reach of their prices to a broader range of potential clients, while larger firms could cut costs by collapsing multiple contribution applications that compete for desktop real estate into just using their Bloomberg terminal, and could expand their use of Bloomberg's API to access other internal applications that previously required them to deploy a separate messaging layer.

The opportunity is being made possible by Bloomberg's moves to open up its data platform (IMD, Oct. 30). The alternative to using a tool such as Market Data Integrator would be for firms to integrate data from disparate systems to Bloomberg's API on a case-by-case basis, Pein says.

"For example, you build code to take a database and push it to Bloomberg, but another group in your firm is unaware of that and builds its own code to do the same thing, and before you know it, you have 300 custom code bases performing roughly the same function, whereas Market Data Integrator makes Bloomberg a universal messaging layer across your firm, which could save massive amounts of money," he says.

Clients define what data to publish-for example, down to specific rows and columns in a spreadsheet running either on their desktop or within Market Data Integrator deployed on a central server-and to whom it should be published via Market Data Integrator's interface, which utilizes a wizard to guide users through the publishing process. The interface also allows users to monitor exactly what data is being published onto Bloomberg's network cloud via its API, how many people are subscribing, and the specific data they are subscribing to, says Bryan Campbell, product manager at CodeStreet.

The next step, which the vendor is close to enabling, is to allow users to set up the system to automatically publish proprietary data to clients and counterparties via Bloomberg in real time, Campbell says.

-Max Bowie

Read full story >