Linking is a conceptual requirement, not a format feature. It is a more complex requirement so it naturally needs more complex semantics to implement. So far so

Linking is a conceptual requirement, not a format feature. It is a more complex requirement so it naturally needs more complex semantics to implement. So far so unavoidable. A good design would allow progressively adding semantic complexity iff needed. I think the popularity of json was just because xml violated this very simple design aspect. Unfortunately it is true that linking, metadata, ontologies and all that stuff are required as the ambition of information exchange increases. People who deny that obviously have never worked on any domain that requires significant data exchanges between many independent actors. So now we are stuck with two sub-optimal solutions: a simple but incomplete json approach that must reinvent the wheel without destroying its good bits and a complex and hard to use xml approach that is only loved by software bureaucrats...