Hurley's World

Developers to play with BBC wares - The BBC opens up its content for outside web developers and designers to "create cool new things". [BBC - Technology]

With announcements such as the above increasing in frequency across the Internet, I wonder if perhaps we are about to enter the next phase of Internet growth. The first phase began when AOL (and probably some other companies) created the monthly rate plan which was well within the grasp of many Americans. Once AOL launched that product, URLs were popping up everywhere from print to TV. And while the Internet is awesome, there is only so far it could go with the old way of doing things. For many people, their bookmark lists are getting too long and it takes too long to check out every website of interest to see if the content has been updated and what has been added.

However, as more companies move to technologies such as RSS feeds, the utility and productivity of the Internet can increase by leaps and bounds. In addition, it can fit into our life in a more seamless manner. Currently, instead of going to three or more different sites to read the latest news, I come here to my own website, look at my news aggregator, and have all the news I could ever want. Of course, as a developer myself, I want even more control over what I view and I find some of the EULAs a little too restrictive for my own taste. But all in all, I heartily applaud the BBC for taking this step and I look forward to the creative chaos that will continue to evolve as we free up additional content and ideas.