Commercial real estate practitioners are beginning to accept the fact that data is a commodity, and sharing that commodity does not undermine their ability to make deals and thrive.

That's what Russell K. Booth, a past president of the National Association of Realtors® and senior management official with Coldwell Banker Commercial in Salt Lake City speaking on behalf of the Realtors® Commercial Alliance of NAR, told more than 1,500 commercial real estate practitioners here for the fourth annual Realcomm conference.

For the second year in a row, RCA was the platinum sponsor for the three-day conference that offered technological solutions to commercial real estate business. It was also the second year in a row that RCA ran the Commercial Board Summit.

Booth said today's market is too complex for protectionist practices in commercial real estate technology and encouraged Realtors® to participate to form commercial information exchanges (CIEs).

"CIEs are a critical tool for our industry, because they have the flexibility to take into account local market situations. Commercial real estate professionals are quickly discovering that information delivered locally will win, since about 70 percent of all leasing deals involves local tenants," said Booth, a past chairman of the RCA Advisory Board.

CIEs are electronic compilations of property data on listings submitted by participating brokers and firms. They differ from their residential MLS counterpart in that there is no unilateral offer of compensation; instead, commissions are individually negotiated for each deal. Subscribers pay for the operation of the exchange, varying from $20 per month to over $100 per month, depending on sophistication and functionality of the exchange. "Many CIEs display parts of the listings to the public in an effort to meet today's growing demand for self-serve information. Commercial practitioners are finding that their customers don't value them so much for the information they keep, but rather for the expertise they offer," he said.

CIEs have virtually exploded in the past three years, more than doubling from eight to 18 markets. Commercial practitioners in 14 other markets are actively considering them for their areas, making a total of 32 CIEs either operational or in the works today that are owned or managed by Realtor® boards. Soon there will be CIEs moving toward statewide and regional operation, he said.

"Sharing information makes deals happen. And making deals happen is what we're all about. The bottom line is that our business is built on competition, and we are this country's most enterprising organization of entrepreneurs. We use technology to give us that competitive edge, but our success depends on our own determination, our drive, our commitment to the customer.

"We can't just protect what we have; we have to move out of our comfort zones and make today's technology work for us. The opportunity of sharing our information and really letting our competitive wits carry us forward is here. It's time to open the door," Booth said.

He noted that NAR is committed to helping members stay ahead of the curve in today's dynamic and demanding real estate market by supporting the development of CIEs.

Bonnie Gottlieb, NAR senior vice president of commercial real estate, moderated a general session panel titled, "Commercial Real Estate: Surviving and Thriving in the Digital Age." The panel included leaders from Oracle Corp., Marcus & Millichap, the General Services Administration/Public Buildings Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In addition to being the platinum sponsor, RCA shared a booth display with NAR affiliates CCIM Institute, the Institute of Real Estate Management, the Society of Industrial and Officer Realtors®, and The Counselors of Real Estate. More than 80 attendees from NAR's Commercial Boards and Structures discussed aspects of creating and running CIEs and met with several CIE vendors who demonstrated their systems.

RCA provides a framework for all commercial groups and commercial services within NAR and for NAR's involvement with the commercial real estate industry. RCA is strongly committed to fostering growth through education and sharing of success stories.

To find out more about CIEs, go to realtor.org/rca and click on Find a Commercial Property to view CIEs with public views.

The National Association of Realtors®, "The Voice for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association, representing more than 800,000 members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. Information about NAR is available at http://realtor.org. This and other news releases are posted in the Web site's "News Media" section.