[CivicAccess-discuss] ODI Kitchener to get 3 million from feds. - Open Data for entrepreneurs

[Tracey P. Lauriault]

Seems like a big chunk sole source thing then!


On Fri, Feb 14, 2014 at 5:38 PM, James McKinney <james at opennorth.ca> wrote:

> It was on the list on the 11th:
> http://civicaccess.48776.x6.nabble.com/Fwd-OpenDataBC-Budget-Contains-Funding-for-Open-Data-td6535.html
>
> I don't think it was a tender. It seems to be an OpenText-led initiative.
> It's news to the people I know at the University of Waterloo.
>
>
> On 2014-02-14, at 12:26 PM, Tracey P. Lauriault wrote:
>
>
> Have any of you see of heard this?  Were you aware there was a tender for
> this?
>
> Cheers
> t
>
>> Kitchener group aiming to mine open data gets $3-million in federal budget
>>  By Terry Pender
>>
>> KITCHENER -- A local group of technology companies and organizations
>> received $3 million in the federal budget Tuesday to establish the Open
>> Data Institute.
>>
>> The money will be provided over three years to get large amounts of data
>> from the public and private sectors into a standard format that can be
>> mined for new insights and innovations leading to new products and
>> companies.
>>
>> "I am very pleased the federal government has chosen to support this,"
>> said Kevin Tuer, managing director of the Canadian Digital Media Network.
>>
>> The network, which is based in The Tannery in downtown Kitchener, put
>> together a proposal for the federal government that included public and
>> private partners for the Open Data Institute, including Communitech,
>> Desire2Learn, the University of Waterloo and Open Text.
>>
>> Tuer travelled to Ottawa on Tuesday and was in the budget lock-up to see
>> first hand if the federal government would fund this region's latest move
>> to grow the digital economy.
>>
>> "We are recognizing the opportunity for open data," said Tuer, managing
>> director of Communitech.
>>
>> The institute will be a national initiative based in this region, either
>> at the Communitech Hub in The Tannery or at the University of Waterloo, or
>> both.
>>
>> "It is going to capitalize on getting the open data into the hands of the
>> entrepreneurs, and just generally making more data available," Tuer said.
>>
>> The Open Data Institute will work with governments, academic institutions
>> and the private sector on common standards, integration of data from
>> different levels of government and the commercialization of the data.
>> Developing a common platform to share and access data sets will allow the
>> development of new applications and products, creating new businesses and
>> jobs.
>>
>> "We can be a world leader in open data," Tuer said. "I think there is
>> unlimited potential here to do something great."
>>
>> The $3 million from the federal government will be matched with cash and
>> services from the other partners. The Open Data Institute will provide many
>> new opportunities for startups, social-innovation organization, researchers
>> and the commercialization of data sets.
>>
>> "It is democratized, it is available for everyone," said Iain Klugman,
>> the head of Communitech.
>>
>> Yelp, Google Maps and many weather apps use one form of open data --
>> information provided by individuals that is pooled and shared online. The
>> other kind, sometimes called Big Data, includes vast amounts of information
>> collected by private companies and governments that can be posted in bulk
>> online.
>>
>> IBM, for example, used GPS data from cellphones to plan more efficient
>> transit routes in Istanbul and other large cities. It also uses water
>> treatment and consumption data to detect leaks in water mains.
>>
>> "We have this access to this big data. Now how can we help startups and
>> other companies take advantage of this resource to build businesses?"
>> Klugman said.
>>
>> Tuesday's federal budget also contained $15 million for the University of
>> Waterloo's Institute for Quantum Computing, and more money for a national
>> program that helps early-stage startups called the Canadian
>> Accelerator/Incubator Program.
>>
>> "I think there is good stuff in here for the region and innovation
>> entrepreneurship right across the country," Klugman said.
>>
>> tpender at therecord.com
>>
>
>
> --
> Tracey P. Lauriault
> http://traceyplauriault.wordpress.com/2013/07/23/moving-to-ireland/
> https://gcrc.carleton.ca/confluence/display/GCRCWEB/Lauriault
> http://datalibre.ca/
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-- 
Tracey P. Lauriault
http://traceyplauriault.wordpress.com/2013/07/23/moving-to-ireland/
https://gcrc.carleton.ca/confluence/display/GCRCWEB/Lauriault
http://datalibre.ca/
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