Media Release

64/2009
1 October 2009

Government 2.0 Taskforce Launches MashupAustralia Contest

The Government 2.0 Taskforce has launched the MashupAustralia contest to encourage innovative use of and more open access to public sector information.

The contest, which challenges members of the public to take government and other datasets and combine them in innovative ways, will be supported by a ‘mash‑up camp’ where Web 2.0 enthusiasts can collaborate and share ideas.

“This contest allows government to tap into the wealth of ideas and experience in Australia’s online community,” Minister for Finance and Deregulation Lindsay Tanner said.

“At the same time it provides an opportunity for innovators to showcase their ideas and potentially be rewarded for their efforts.”

Prizes of up to $10,000 will be on offer for the best mashups across a range of categories, including people’s favourite and student prizes.

The Government 2.0 taskforce was launched in June this year to look at ways to expand the uses of public sector information, drive innovation and improve the way government engages with citizens.

The contest complements research projects recently commissioned by the Taskforce to provide information on six key areas of interest:

• Enhancing the discoverability and accessibility of government information;
• Barriers within agencies to adopting Government 2.0;
• Australian Government Web 2.0 practices;
• Copyright and intellectual property barriers to open data sharing;
• Semantic Web – tagging datasets to enable sharing and re-use of data; and
• The value of open access to public sector information held in cultural institutions.

The MashupAustralia contest is open from 7 October to 6 November 2009. More information can be found at www.mashupaustralia.org

For further information on the Government 2.0 Taskforce, go to www.gov2.net.au

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