In a response to Peter F.
The objective of the this competition is bring out creativity in visualising Geo-spatial data. Mashups have brought more of this information into the public arena. Obviously, the competition is trying to provide an incentive for people and companies to show innovation and creativity.
The point of Mashup challenge to create a level playing field. Promoting the use of open source tools means that hopefully we will see more entires. Not everyone has the money or the expertise to run MapInfo .
Google maps and et are like the MP3 of the GIS world. It has made mapping and spatial visualisation available to everyone with a browser. Just as MP3 maybe not be good enough for audiophiles, google maps is not going to be powerful enough for a lot of serious GIS work. The simplicity of Google maps is going drive the consumption of GIS information into a new era.
I would suggest that introducing categories ie Open-source based entires vs Product based to the competition to enable companies to demonstrate their skills.
