Photo Courtesy: Flickr/Lars Plougmann

In recent blogs we’ve discussed where semantic technologies have gone in 2012, and a bit about where they will go this year (see here, here and here).

Here are some final thoughts from our panel of semantic web experts on what to expect to see as the New Year rings in:

John Breslin,lecturer at NUI Galway, researcher and unit leader at DERI, creator of SIOC, and co-founder of Technology Voice and StreamGlider

Broader deployment of the schema.org terms is likely. In the study by Muehlisen and Bizer in July this year, we saw Open Graph Protocol, DC, FOAF, RSS, SIOC and Creative Commons still topping the ranks of top semantic vocabularies being used. In 2013 and beyond, I expect to see schema.org jump to the top of that list.

Christine Connors, Chief Ontologist, Knowledgent:

I think we will see an uptick in the job market for semantic technologists in the enterprise; primarily in the Fortune 2000. I expect to see some M&A activity as well from systems providers and integrators who recognize the desire to have a semantic component in their product suite. (No, I have no direct knowledge; it is my hunch!)

We will see increased competition from data analytics vendors who try to add RDF, OWL or graphstores to their existing platforms. I anticipate saying, at the end of 2013, that many of these immature deployments will leave some project teams disappointed. The mature vendors will need to put resources into sales and business development, with the right partners for consulting and systems integration, to be ready to respond to calls for proposals and assistance.

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In December, a group of Semantic thought leaders from around the globe met with their host and colleague, Eric Franzon, for the latest installment of the Semantic Link, a monthly podcast covering the world of Semantic Technologies. This episode includes a discussion about the newly launched Open Data Institute (ODI) in the UK, and “the Linkers” were joined by a special guest: Nigel Shadbolt, Chairman and Co-Founder of the ODI. You can learn more about the ODI here.
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On Friday, October 12, a group of Semantic thought leaders from around the globe met with their host and colleague, Paul Miller, for the latest installment of the Semantic Link, a monthly podcast covering the world of Semantic Technologies. This episode includes a discussion about various approaches to building semantic systems, and “the Linkers” were joined by two special guests: Hadley Beeman, expert in Government Linked Data and Open Data; and Joel Natividad, CEO & Co-Founder, Ontodia.
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The Open Data Institute has announced that Jeni Tennison will take the role of Technical Director at the Institute and Gavin Starks will take the role of CEO. The announcement states, “Created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Professor Nigel Shadbolt, the ODI will open its doors this autumn and is a world-first, dedicated to incubating and nurturing new and existing businesses that want to use open data to create economic growth… The new hires will be based at the ODI’s Shoreditch HQ, which will open its doors later this year and will become a focal point for entrepreneurs and developers, start-ups and established corporates, technologists and creatives to meet, share ideas and drive growth.” Shadbolt will give a keynote address at next week’s SemTechBiz UK Conference in London. Read more

Rising Media and WebMediaBrands, producers of the Semantic Technology and Business Conference – UK (#SemTechBiz), have announced details of this year’s event, the foremost conference series on semantic technologies.

This year’s line-up of speakers includes Professor Nigel Shadbolt, Co-Director, Open Data Institute. A former President of the British Computer Society, Professor Shadbolt has been involved in a wide range of entrepreneurial activities.  In 2009, together with Sir Tim Berners-Lee, he was appointed as information advisor by the Prime Minister to help transform public access to Government information. Professor Shadbolt will be delivering a keynote presentation on day 1 of the conference.

The 2012 Semantic Technology and Business Conference – UK will be held on 19-20 September at The Millennium Gloucester Hotel, 4-18 Harrington Gardens, London SW7 4HL.

Semantic Technology and Business Conference – UK brings together today’s industry thought leaders and practitioners to explore the challenges and opportunities impacting both corporate business leaders and technologists. The two day conference is packed with case studies and real-world perspectives, with insight and learning from global experts in technology, financial services, insurance, healthcare, publishing, government, automotive and enterprise data.

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Katy Cowan recently reported that a new Open Data Institute is going to be established in London in order to “drive innovation and exploit the growth opportunities for the UK created by the government’s Open Data policy.” Cowan writes, “The government is to commit up to £10 million over five years to support the Open Data Institute (ODI), which will be co-directed by Professor Tim Berners-Lee and Professor Nigel Shadbolt. The ODI will be developed by the Technology Strategy Board and the implementation plan for the Institute will be published by the Technology Strategy Board by April 2012.” Read more