Making Innovation Flourish

The future is smart machines (and soup)

Last week I read an interview with Tim Berners-Lee about the future of the internet, the so-called 'semantic web'. Not as catchy a name as 'Web 2.0' but potentially even more powerful. Reading the interview reminded me that while the concept of the semantic web has been around a while, and has been proclaimed the Next Big Thing by net gurus the world over, explaining the concept and why it could revolutionise our lives is difficult. Eyes glaze over as soon as things like "data-meshing" are mentioned, and even Sir Berners-Lee's explanation didn't quite hit the mark for me. So here's my own attempt at a Plain English explanation of this woolly and unfortunately named concept, hopefully in a way that even my mum would understand. Make of it what you will.

Let's start at the beginning, with Web 1.0: producers created content that was published on websites for consumers to find and consume.

In Web 2.0, the lines betweeen consumer and producer are blurred. Consumer-producers can now upload their own content, and consume the content of other consumer-producers, through blogs & sites like YouTube or MySpace. By exchanging this home-made stew of information with each other, online social networks are created.

Web 2.0 is also about doing more stuff through your web browser, things that you used to do on paper or on software that you had to install on your computer. BackPack replaces your personal datebook or Outlook calendar, Flickr replaces your photo albums, for example. You can label your photos and events with descriptive words or 'tags' that make it easy for you to find them. And of course, you can share this content with your friends.

Now on to the tricky part...

Missing the point: net radio's last stand

In the same week that NMA announced that online (download) sales now acount for 90% of British single sales (yes, ninety!), the UK Copyright Tribunal did exactly what I was hoping they wouldn't: they followed the US CRB in effecting royalty charges that could kill internet radio in the UK entirely. What's more, the UK fees will be up to 9 times the amount their US counterparts will pay. Pandora, one of the most respected US services that had only recently started broadcasting in the UK, is preparing to shut down their UK operation as early as this week.

What stations like Pandora do is provide an excellent way of selling more records. Here's how: you type in the name of a song or musician you like, and Pandora plays you music that is similar. You may never have heard of the artist or song that Pandora plays to you, but if you like it, you can buy it from iTunes or Amazon at a single click. I have no doubt that this has led to an increase in sales, especially for lesser-known artists.

The whole purpose of royalty fees is to protect composers and performers (and of course record companies) by compensating them each time their song is played in public, thus generating income for them. But actions like the new net radio fees will only end up hurting music sales, which generate more income than royalties. The UK Copyright Tribunal and the US CRB have effectively killed off one of music's cheapest and most effective marketing tools.

Until regulatory bodies like this recognise that the world has changed around them and learn to adapt their ways of working to account for the digital age, it's a lose-lose situation. Regulation needs to evolve to support innovative business models like internet radio, or nobody wins.

Our education system needs to change - a Provocation

I'd like to draw your attention to our latest Provocation - a thought piece on the subject of creativity, innovation and education.  These are free to download from the NESTA website and include extended essays by key thought leaders working in innovation. They aim to foster debate and new ideas, and showcase thought-provoking work on innovation.

Beginning at the Beginning: The Creativity Gap was written for NESTA by Anthony Sargent, General Director and Katherine Zeserson, Director of Learning and Participation at The Sage Gateshead.  The essay argues that to unleash the innovative capacity of the UK in the 21st century, our education system needs to nurture the natural creative innovator in all children and ensure it is protected, nourished and stimulated into adult life.  It critiques many aspects of our current approach to education, and outlines a vision of a creative education system that operates as a whole community process.  This essay was launched in Gateshead last week and was also the subject of our latest policy breakfast in London last Friday.

I welcome your comments.

Launching 'The Disrupters'

I am pleased to announce the latest report from NESTA Policy and Research Unit (NPRU).

The Disrupters: lessons for low-carbon innovation from the new wave of environmental pioneers tells the stories of eight businesses and organisations that are pursuing low-carbon goals by putting into practice new business models or services, or cheaper and simpler alternatives to existing products or services. The report argues that while our efforts to reduce carbon emissions could benefit from these disruptive forms of innovation (perhaps more effectively than through pumping money into more radical technology-based forms of innovation), the UK is currently not set up to encourage them and the entrepreneurs that drive them – in fact, they are frequently thwarted. The report was the subject of a recent Daily Telegraph article and was launched last week in conjunction with NESTA’s latest ‘Innovation Challenge’ around the issue of climate change.

• More details and download a PDF of The Disrupters
• Download the accompanying Policy Briefing - New types of innovation for a low-carbon society.
• Video of Rebecca Willis, co-author, presenting The Disrupters at our Environment Challenge launch

Secondfest: the shape of things to come?

This weekend I attended Secondfest, The Guardian- and Intel-sponsored 3-day virtual music festival that took place in SecondLife, the online virtual world. Intel donated the use of their SecondLife islands, and The Guardian sponsored what promised to be a stellar lineup of artists.

On the whole, it looked just like a real-life music festival: several stages, a campsite complete with tents, drinks stalls and whatnot. But this is exactly what let things down in my mind. Why would you build an exact replica of a real-life festival in an environment where you could have virtually anything? Why not put one of the stages on a cloud? Or inside a giant dinosaur? Or under water? Making the impossible possible is one of the joys of SecondLife. I think they missed a real trick here.