[kNews] Kendra: Real World pledge, 3 new EU projects, P2P-Next

[kNews <k-news@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear All,

Live from planet Kendra...

1. Join Real World pledge to fund Kendra Initiative
2. Kendra Hub (FOSS DAM) - a content owner's dream
3. Kendra in three new EU projects this year
4. Incoming EU projects - join proposal review team
5. P2P-Next trial: request for interesting video content
6. Seeking new members in Stockholm - June 2009
7. DrupalCon in Paris 1-5 September

1. JOIN REAL WORLD PLEDGE TO FUND KENDRA INITIATIVE

Mike Large said that Real World (founded by Peter Gabriel) would be 
interested in providing ongoing financial support to Kendra if there were 
10 or more other entities doing so too. All incoming funds will satisfy the 
EC requirement for Kendra to raise 25% of the project costs. Funds will be 
spent on moving the Kendra website to Drupal, further development of Kendra 
Hub and Kendra Signposts.
 

This is a great opportunity. If you are aware of any pots of gold or 
bonused bankers with a guilty conscience ;-) then do get in touch. You can 
pledge your support directly here:
 
http://www.kendra.org.uk/pledge.php

2. KENDRA HUB (FOSS DAM) - A CONTENT OWNER'S DREAM

Kendra Hub will not be a service like MySpace or Facebook but free open 
source software that artists, bands and record labels will use to manage 
their digital media assets and interact with their online distribution 
points and social communities. So, this means that content owners only need 
to enter their metadata once (hurrah!) and it will be 
syndicated/transformed to the appropriate distribution points. Content 
owners will be in control. I look forward to your comments and questions.
 

See the full funding proposal being made to the Knight Foundation. If you 
are a Drupalite then please comment and vote on it:
 

Kendra Hub - Media Asset/Content Management, Semantic Syndication/Promotion 
and Commerce Tool
 
http://groups.drupal.org/node/18936

The Knight Foundation Announces $485,380 in Funding for Six Drupal 
Projects
 
http://drupal.org/node/393554

Knight Drupal Initiative
http://groups.drupal.org/knight-drupal-initiative

(By the way FOSS DAM stands for Free and Open Source Software Digital Asset 
Management)
 

3. KENDRA IN THREE NEW EU PROJECTS THIS YEAR

Early in 2009 Kendra Initiative was invited to three more EU FP7 
consortiums. This is obviously great news for the project not only for 
gaining funding to carry out research and development but also for 
connecting and collaborating with some very interesting and high class 
partners. I'm told that the EC announce the winners sometime in June. If 
you have tendrils into the EC then make sure you put in a knowing nod and 
wink for these three projects: 
 

- FUSE (Future internet User centric Search and retrieval Environments) is 
proposing a user-centric media search and retrieval framework for highly 
unstructured P2P topologies. Partners include: Archetypon - Greece, IBM 
Research Labs - Israel, Philips Consumer Electronics - Netherlands, 
National Technical University of Athens - Greece, Kendra Foundation - 
United Kingdom, Intrasoft International - Belgium, University of Florence - 
Italy, DIAS Publishing - Cyprus and Artklikk R&D - Hungary.
 

- NASDAC (p2p multimedia Networks with Advanced Search and Dynamic 
Adaptation Capabilities) is proposing mechanisms for fingerprinting, 
indexing and searching audiovisual material in the P2P realm. Partners 
include: Institute of Communications and Computer Systems - Greece, 
Civolution - Netherlands, Institute of Digital Media Technologies of 
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft - Germany, ESCoM-FMSH - France, Optibase - Israel, 
Global Digital Technologies - Greece and Kendra Foundation - United 
Kingdom.
 

- SARACEN (Socially Aware, collaboRative, scAlable Coding mEdia 
distribution) is proposing P2P architectures for media streaming using 
social networking tools to enhance personalisation of content search and 
experience. Partners include: Institute of Communication and Computer 
Systems - Greece, Instituto de Novas Tecnologias - Portugal, PrimeTel - 
Cyprus, Koç �niversitesi - Turkey, Queen Mary University of London - 
United Kingdom, Kendra Foundation - United Kingdom, CTVC - United Kingdom 
and Nimonia TV - Cyprus.
 

4. INCOMING EU PROJECTS - JOIN PROPOSAL REVIEW TEAM

What has become clear is that Kendra Initiative is in a unique position to 
participate in EU funded projects related to content distribution. Kendra 
is useful to many EU project consortiums as it spans the whole content 
value chain. Kendra has access to content owners, hard/software developers 
and service providers. Without any promotion or networking Kendra was 
invited into 3 EU project consortiums this year. It also occurs to me that 
we should collectively be influencing the EU research agenda and telling 
them what areas they should fund to the benefit of all those in the content 
value chain.
 

This year I will be promoting Kendra to potential project coordinators at 
several key events including NEM (Networked and Electronic Media) Summit in 
Saint-Malo, France, 28-30 September 2009
 
http://www.nem-initiative.org

We need to build a team to review and assess these proposals as they 
arrive. Please join me on the Kendra Framework discussion list:
 
http://www.kendra.org.uk/lists.php
And the wiki:
http://www.kendra.org.uk/wiki/wiki.pl?ProjectTeam

5. P2P-NEXT TRIAL: REQUEST FOR INTERESTING VIDEO CONTENT

P2P-Next are requesting interesting and compelling video content to use in 
our Living Lab trial. If you are interested in getting involved in this 
innovative project and have complete global copyright clearance (for 
avoidance of doubt) then do get in touch. As well as participating in a 
cutting edge research project we hope that all those involved will gain 
positive publicity. Any questions let me know. See:
 
http://www.kendra.org.uk/wiki/wiki.pl?P2P-NextContent

6. SEEKING NEW MEMBERS IN STOCKHOLM - JUNE 2009

In early June I'll be attending a quarterly P2P-Next meeting in Stockholm. 
If you are in Stockholm or have media contacts you think I should meet then 
let me know.
 

7. DRUPALCON IN PARIS 1-5 SEPTEMBER

Once again I'll be attending DrupalCon. This year it's in Paris from 1st to 
5th September 2009. So, if you are there then make sure that we hook up. 
There'll be lots to talk about: Kendra Hub, the new Kendra website and 
Kendra Signpost prototypes. See:
 
http://paris2009.drupalcon.org
http://drupal.org

Have a great Summer! ;-)

Cheers Daniel

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