Snip!t from collection of Alan Dix

<div class="journal-entry-text"><h2 class="title"><a class="journal-entry-navigation-current" href="/blog/2011/10/28/green-shoots-of-linked-open-data-around-news.html">Green shoots of linked (open) data around&nbsp;news</a> </h2> <div class="journal-entry-tag journal-entry-tag-post-title"><span class="posted-on"> <img title="Date" alt="Date" class="inline-icon date-icon" src="/universal/images/transparent.png">Friday, October 28, 2011 at 5:31PM</span> </div> <div class="body"> <p><span class="full-image-block ssNonEditable"><span><img src="/storage/lodnews.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1319823440807" alt=""></span><span class="thumbnail-caption" style="width: 620px;">Based on <a href="http://lod-cloud.net/">Linking Open Data cloud diagram</a>, by Richard Cyganiak and Anja Jentzsch - some rights reserved (<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/">CC-BY-SA</a>)</span></span></p> <p>A couple of weeks ago Justin and I attended an event hosted by <a href="http://consulting.talis.com/">Talis</a>, <a href="http://consulting.talis.com/event/data-on-the-web-the-benefits-of-linking/">Data on the Web: The Benefits of Linking</a>. It was a useful session all round (and if you are anywhere near Birmingham on 10 November, I note that <a href="http://consulting.talis.com/event/data-on-the-web-the-benefits-of-linking-2/">another one</a> is planned for there and then). We were particularly taken by <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/TalisConsulting/semantic-news">this presentation by Jared McGinnis on the Press Association's thinking behind its recent publication of its ontology</a>, and the part the ontology is set to play in the PA's strategy. This points to the commercial value of linked data - not only linked, but <a href="http://linkeddata.org/">linked&nbsp;open data</a>, and open in the read and write directions: PA has <a href="http://data.press.net/ontology/">openly published</a> its ontology, and it is ingesting <a href="http://www.geonames.org/">geonames</a> to provide IDs around location. The commercial angle is particularly significant, as the argument for linked open data is often couched in the language of public good, and often advocated by public institutions like government or the BBC. PA's advocacy - and we hope proven commercial success will follow - has the prospect of being something of a game-changer in perceptions of the value of semantic approaches. (Incidentally Talis' Tim Hodson provided <a href="http://consulting.talis.com/2011/09/ontologies-wont-make-you-rich-or-will-they/">a nuanced and useful explanation</a> on their blog last month of the difference between publishing data, which often has a proprietary commercial value for its owners (or indeed is not always fully theirs to give away) and publishing the data model.)</p> <p>But speaking of the BBC and the public service argument for linked open data, it is heartening indeed to see that <a href="https://careers.bbc.co.uk/fe/tpl_BBC01.asp?newms=jj&amp;id=40743">the BBC is recruiting a data architect for News</a>. I've linked before to <a href="http://www.r4isstatic.com/?p=90">Paul Rissen's article of a year ago eloquently setting out the case for the public value of this stuff</a>, and it now looks as though he and like-minded colleagues are really being listened to inside the organisation.</p> <p>I'm tuned into what's going on in news at the moment on account of my work programme managing the relaunch of ITV's News, Sport &amp; Weather service, but there is clearly wider significance to all of this.&nbsp;I still hold out hopes for linked open data becoming a standard in the music industry; unfortunately <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2008/07/bbc_music_artist_pages_beta.html">the adoption of MusicBrainz</a> that I oversaw as editor of the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/music">BBC Music website</a> has yet to travel much further (beyond <a href="http://www.last.fm/group/MusicBrainz.org">patchy adoption by last.fm</a>), despite the benefits that I believe could accrue to record labels in particular from adopting such an open standard. <a href="http://www.unthinkableconsulting.com/blog/2011/10/17/metadata-and-the-ciktn-some-context-for-year-two.html">As Simon pointed out recently</a>, the ideal of the semantic web still feels like an idea whose time is coming, but we do need to start seeing proven commercial models if it is to make it into the mainstream.</p> </div> </div> <div class="journal-entry-tag journal-entry-tag-post-body"> <div class="journal-entry-tag-post-body-line1"><span class="posted-by"> <a href="/blog/author/matthewshorter"> <img title="Author" alt="Author" class="inline-icon user-registered-icon" src="/universal/images/transparent.png">Matthew Shorter</a></span></div></div>