The mismatch between the data representation that one application provides and the data representation that another application expects forms the core of this long-lived problem.
This data integration problem is particularly troublesome for SOA implementations because it limits the loose coupling between service providers and consumers, unless there is an effective way to decouple the provider and consumer's data representations. The need to access information of so many disparate types from so many disparate sources forms the semantic integration challenge that organizations must deal with today.
