Friend of VentnorBlog, Chris Taggart, has today launched yet another Open Data Website on to the Web.
Building on his previous recent projects OpenlyLocal.com and OpenCharities, he’s collaborated with Rob McKinnon (who built TheyWorkForYou.nz and WhosLobbying.com), on Open Corporates.
Bold ambition
Open Corporates has a bold ambition – to have a single URL for every company in the world.
Having a single reference for each company will give the ability to connect together webs of companies – some in off-shore tax havens like Bermuda and Jersey – that some organisations create.
Through tools – some included, some external – queries across different, seemingly unconnected data can be made. An example they give – Which companies have environmental statements and have had Health & Safety Executive Notices issued against them? (answer)
This could be the WikiLeaks-type exposure tool to the currently-unlit corners of company inter-relationships that many a tax-dodging company would rather didn’t exist.
Quite of its time.
