Economist on Semantic Web

An indication that the concept of using Semantic Web technologies to improve the Internet may be reaching the mainstream in a recent article in the Economist: The long-promised "semantic" web is starting to take shape. The examples are rather lame though, possibly an indication that the most valuable applications of SW technology is not yet in the consumer space but in the more esoteric domains of healthcare and life sciences. I mean, most travel websites do a pretty good job of taking in large amounts of data then rapidly crunching the numbers to produce a reasonable itinerary in a short amount of time for no fee. Does the consumer require new technology to improve on this? While I doubt the Economist has won over any new converts with this article keeping this technology on the lay public's radar will be useful in making advances in information technology.