"We probably destroyed more than we created," said Microsoft Research Partner Architect Jaron Lanier, who in a baggy T-shirt and dreadlocks could not have looked more the opposite of the impeccably groomed Mr. Sorrell. "We discovered in Silicon Valley if you apply information systems to an industry you can shrink an industry but grow yourself. It happened to the music business, and it's a huge problem."

Mr. Sorrell swung back: "[We've got] the internet ... and you've narrowed it down to [the notion that] data and data analytics have destroyed more than they've created. I think that's palpable nonsense. Clearly there's a change in the balance of power to consumers … [but] the political benefits, social benefits and economic benefits outweigh the disadvantages."