Udell points out, quite rightly, that

“Give us the data” is an easy slogan to chant. And there’s no doubt that much good will come from poking through what we are given. But we also need to have ideas about what we want the data for, and communicate those ideas to the providers who are gathering it on our behalf.

In what is planned to become an annual competition known as NYC Big Apps, the city will make available about 80 data sets from 32 city agencies and commissions. The winners of the competition will get a cash prize, recognition at a dinner with the mayor, and marketing opportunities.

One has to be wary of competitions: they can be a way of trying to get some work for free, or a sign that the project doesn’t have realistic funding behind it. On the other hand, it shows that the sponsor wants to tap a wider range of imagination than it would get with the usual contracting process.

Dinner with the mayor!

Hat tip: "tootie" at reddit.