NUI Galway's Digital Enterprise Research Institute, DERI, has developed a Semantically Interlinked Online Communities (SIOC) specification for connecting online communities, which it has recently submitted to the World Wide Web Consortium, the Web standards organisation.

The SIOC specification enables the exploitation of knowledge created by communities on the Web in applications such as blogging, message boards and media sharing. It has been initiated at DERI and co-developed with a wide range of companies, research organisations, and volunteers around the world.

"DERI Galway is playing a leading role in creating cutting edge Web technology and standard proposals. SIOC is just another example of how technology developed in Ireland is changing the world and the Web for the better, enabling new opportunities for Irish and European industry. The investment Ireland has made is starting to pay off" says Professor Stefan Decker, Director of DERI.

SIOC is already widely deployed on the Web, with extensions for popular systems such as /WordPress, a widespread blogging application; Drupal, a popular content management system; and phpBB, an open source forum software. Several Web 2.0 companies are using SIOC for the exchange and aggregation of community information, enabling them to deliver better services.

Dr John Breslin, a researcher based at DERI and co-founder of boards.ie, Ireland s largest online discussion community, and his fellow DERI researcher Uldis Bojars are leading the SIOC effort at the Institute and are coordinating a world-wide team.

"SIOC is crucial for the development of a next generation World Wide Web, it brings the world together," says Dr Breslin.

DERI is currently the largest applied research organisation in the world developing the next generation of Internet technology - the Semantic Web. "Founded in 2003 with CSET (Centre for Science and Engineering Technology) funding from Science Foundation Ireland with Hewlett Packard Galway as its main industrial partner, it has since grown to over 100 people and has acquired significant additional research funding from sources such as the European Union Framework Programmes, Enterprise Ireland, and industrial partnerships.

Dr Stephen Flinter of SFI states: "Science Foundation Ireland s investment in DERI represents one of its largest investments in the software area, signalling the importance of the Semantic Web. SFI is greatly encouraged by the world class results such as this being produced by the DERI researchers."

ENDS