Innovatiespotter API

# Create .env file first:
# API_EMAIL=your-email@example.com
# API_PASSWORD=your-password

import requests
import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()  # Load .env file

response = requests.get(
    'https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies',
    auth=(os.getenv('API_EMAIL'), os.getenv('API_PASSWORD'))
)

response.raise_for_status()  # Raise exception for HTTP errors
companies = response.json()
print(f"Found {companies['total']} companies")

# pip install azure-keyvault-secrets azure-identity requests
import requests
from azure.keyvault.secrets import SecretClient
from azure.identity import DefaultAzureCredential

# Azure credentials managed via environment/managed identity
credential = DefaultAzureCredential()
client = SecretClient(
    vault_url="https://your-vault.vault.azure.net/", 
    credential=credential
)

email = client.get_secret("api-email").value
password = client.get_secret("api-password").value

response = requests.get(
    'https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies',
    auth=(email, password)
)

response.raise_for_status()
data = response.json()

Environment File Examples

# Save as .env in your project root
API_EMAIL=your-email@example.com
API_PASSWORD=your-secure-password
API_BASE_URL=https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api

<?php
// Save as config.php (never commit to git)
return [
    'api_email' => 'your-email@example.com',
    'api_password' => 'your-secure-password',
    'api_base_url' => 'https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api'
];

Security Best Practices

// Modern JavaScript approach with environment variables
const credentials = btoa(`${process.env.API_EMAIL}:${process.env.API_PASSWORD}`);

fetch('https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?page_size=1', {
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Basic ${credentials}`
  }
})
.then(response => {
  if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`HTTP ${response.status}: ${response.statusText}`);
  return response.json();
})
.then(data => {
  console.log('Success:', data);
  document.getElementById("api_test").innerHTML = JSON.stringify(data, null, 4);
})
.catch(error => {
  console.error('Error:', error);
  document.getElementById("api_test").innerHTML = `Error: ${error.message}`;
});

// Load credentials from config.php file (placed outside web root with proper permissions)
$config = require_once 'config.php';

$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt_array($curl, [
  CURLOPT_URL => $config['api_base_url'] . '/companies',
  CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
  CURLOPT_USERPWD => $config['api_email'] . ':' . $config['api_password'],
  CURLOPT_HTTPAUTH => CURLAUTH_BASIC
]);

$response = curl_exec($curl);
$data = json_decode($response, true);
curl_close($curl);

// Alternative: Using environment variables
// $curl = curl_init();
// curl_setopt_array($curl, [
//   CURLOPT_USERPWD => $_ENV['API_EMAIL'] . ':' . $_ENV['API_PASSWORD'],
//   // ... other options
// ]);

// Modern secure approach - get credentials from user input or env
const getCredentials = () => {
    // Option 1: Get from environment (Node.js/build tools)
    return {
        username: process.env.API_EMAIL || '',
        password: process.env.API_PASSWORD || ''
    };
};

const { username, password } = getCredentials();

$.ajax({
    url: "https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?page_size=1",
    type: "GET",
    headers: {
        "Authorization": 'Basic ' + btoa(username + ":" + password),
        "X-Requested-With": "XMLHttpRequest"
    },
    complete: function(data) {
        let output, output_formatted;
        
        if (data.responseJSON) {
            output = data.responseJSON;
            output_formatted = JSON.stringify(data.responseJSON, null, 4);
        } else {
            output = data.statusText + " => See more in console/Network.";
            output_formatted = output;
        }
        
        console.log(output);
        document.getElementById("api_test").innerHTML = output_formatted;
    }
});

Debugging Tips

• Test authentication with a simple request first
• Check parameter names and values against documentation
• Verify company IDs exist in your subscription
• Use browser developer tools to inspect requests

search performs comprehensive multi-criteria search across all available data, while quicksearch focuses on companies within your subscription for faster results.

Parameters

Live Examples

$.get('https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/search', {
    'q': 'b.v.', 
    'page_size': 20
}, function(data) {
    console.log('Found ' + data.total + ' companies');
    // Handle response data
});

Retrieve comprehensive company information with advanced filtering capabilities including location, innovation themes, business types, and ecosystem memberships. Perfect for data analysis and business intelligence applications.

Core Parameters

Available Filters

Advanced Filter Features

2.3 Examples of use

1. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies => Is the default request. Returns 100 companies in your subscription.
2. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?bag=kantoorfunctie => bag filter.
3. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?bedrijventerrein=12345,67890 => bedrijventerrein filter by rin_nummer. Returns companies with detailed business park information in the response.
4. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?sort_direction=desc&sort_column=jaar&postcode=1999, 1901,2105mg,8911 eR&jaar=2010, 2017&bag=kantoorfunctie => Combination of filters.
5. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?ecosysteem=accenture => Fetches companies with all years of accenture awards.
6. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?ecosysteem=award,startup => Fetches companies with award OR startup ecosystem categories.
7. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?ecosysteem=award_accenture-2015-winnaar => Fetches companies with specific 2015 accenture award.
8. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?ecosysteem_and=fd-gazellen,startup => Fetches companies that have BOTH fd-gazellen AND startup ecosystem categories.
9. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?ecosysteem_exclude=rvo => Fetches companies excluding those with rvo ecosystem category.
10. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?geregistreerd=true&economischactief=true => Fetches all active and economic active registrations.
11. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?geregistreerd=true&has_website_content=true => Fetches all active registrations with available website content.
12. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?geregistreerd=true&economischactief=true&sbi_code=09,139 => Fetches active and economic active registrations with sbi_code 08 (Dienstverlening voor de winning van delfstoffen) and its subcategories as well as sbi_code 139 (Vervaardiging van overige textielproducten) and its subcategories.
13. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?geregistreerd=true&economischactief=true&sbi_code_exclude=09,139 => Fetches all active and economic active registrations excluding ones with sbi_code 08 (Dienstverlening voor de winning van delfstoffen) and its subcategories as well as sbi_code 139 (Vervaardiging van overige textielproducten) and its subcategories.
14. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?sort_direction=desc&sort_column=jaar&jaar=2010,2017 => jaar filter.
15. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?geregistreerd=true&keywords=%22cell%20therapy%22%20AND%20patient => keywords filter fetching only active companies.
16. http://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?kvk=56819528,61556173,16050353 => Fetches all branches from the companies with the listed kvks.
17. http://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?kvk=16050353&vestigingsnummer=000021885613 => Fetches specific branch of companies using combination of vestigingsnummer and kvk.
18. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?sort_direction=desc&sort_column=jaar&postcode=1999 ,1901,2105mg,8911 eR&jaar=2010, 2017&bag=kantoorfunctie&plaats=leeuwarden,groningen&themas=im_proef_ict,im_proef_not_existing,im_proef_bouw&rechtsvorm=B.V.&type_bedrijf=Aardgas,Financi%C3%ABle dienstverlening,Eet- en drinkgelegenheden,ICT-dienstverlening => multiple extensive filtering.
19. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?plaats=leeuwarden,groningen => plaats filter.
20. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?postcode=1999 ,1901,2105mg,8911 eR => postcode filter.
21. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?provincie=Utrecht,Groningen => provincie filter.
22. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?sort_column=rechtsvorm&rechtsvorm=B.V.,C.V.&page_number=14 => rechtsvorm filter.
23. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?themas=im_proef_ict,im_proef_not_existing,im_proef_bouw => themas filter.
24. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?themas_and=im_proef_ict,im_proef_energie => Fetches companies that have BOTH ICT AND energy themes.
25. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?themas_exclude=im_proef_bouw => Fetches companies excluding those with construction theme.
26. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?type_bedrijf=Aardgas,Financi%C3%ABle dienstverlening,Eet- en drinkgelegenheden,ICT-dienstverlening => type_bedrijf filter.
27. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?vestigingstype=Hoofdvestiging => vestigingstype filter fetching only Hoofdvestiging companies [note first capital letter].
28. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies?sort_direction=desc&sort_column=werknemers&werknemers=Cat. 01: 1 - 1,Cat. 05: 20 - 49 => werknemers filter.

Check the response of the examples above by entering those urls in your browser. You should see a json response.

2.4 Example of AJAX request

$.get('https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies', {'themas': 'im_proef_energie'}, yourOnSuccessFunction() );

2.5 Response codes

200 -> OK

4XX -> client error (login, wrong parameters etc)

5XX -> server error

These are the names we use in the backend for referring to the themes you see in the frontend, so for example if you want to filter by the theme "Energie", you have to use the label name im_proef_energie in your request.
So we use this endpoint to provide you with the backend filter names you need to use when you are filtering in companies endpoint.

3.1 Parameters

q -> text (required) [case insensitive]

3.2 Examples of use

1. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/all
2. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/themas
3. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/bedrijventerrein => Returns all information about bedrijventerreinen (rin_nummer can be used for filtering as unique identifier).
4. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/ecosysteem => Returns hierarchical ecosystem structure with all available filter keys for innovation footprint categories.
5. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/sbi_code => Returns flat list of SBI codes (2-3 digits) in "code: name" format.
6. https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/sbi_code?format=hierarchy => Returns hierarchical structure of SBI codes (2-4 digits) with nested organization by industry categories. Keys can be used with sbi_code filter, values with sbi_tekst filter.

Check the response of the examples above by entering those urls in your browser. You should see a json response.

3.3 Example of AJAX request

$.get('https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/filter_values/themas', yourOnSuccessFunction() );

3.4 Response codes

200 -> OK

4XX -> client error (login, wrong parameters etc)

5XX -> server error

Request detailed company data using internal company IDs. You can fetch 1 company using the URL path, or up to 10 companies using the id parameter with comma-separated values.

Parameters

Examples

$.get('https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/company_full/3441068', 
  function(data) {
    console.log('Company:', data.bedrijfsnaam);
    // Handle company data
  });

When filtering by bedrijventerrein using rin_nummer values, each company in the response includes a bedrijventerrein field containing an associative array with detailed business park information:

{
    "bedrijventerrein": {
        "rin_nummer": 4870,
        "jaar": 2022,
        "plan_naam": "Eemspoort",
        "kern_naam": "Groningen",
        "start_jaar": 1997,
        "gem_namen": "Groningen",
        "prov_namen": "Groningen",
        "aantal": 177,
        "ha_netto": "83.00",
        "milieuzone": "Ja",
        "max_milieu": "4"
    }
}

Note: The bedrijventerrein field is only populated when companies are located on a registered business park. Companies not on business parks will have this field as null or empty.

SBI (Standaard Bedrijfsindeling) is the Dutch Standard Business Classification system. The API uses hierarchical wildcard matching - searching for a parent code automatically includes all subcategories.

01: Landbouw, jacht en dienstverlening...
├── 011: Teelt van eenjarige gewassen
├── 012: Teelt van meerjarige gewassen
└── 013: Teelt van sierplanten

63: Dienstverlenende activiteiten op het gebied van informatie
└── 631: Gegevensverwerking, webhosting en aanverwante activiteiten; webportals
└── 639: Overige dienstverlenende activiteiten op het gebied van informatie

072: Speur- en ontwikkelingswerk
├── 721: Natuurwetenschappelijk speur- en ontwikkelingswerk
│   ├── 7211: Biotechnologisch speur- en ontwikkelingswerk
│   └── 7219: Overig natuurwetenschappelijk speur- en ontwikkelingswerk
└── 722: Maatschappij- en geesteswetenschappelijk onderzoek

Filter Examples

Structure: Each key-value pair represents an ecosystem membership where:

• Key: Technical identifier used for filtering (e.g., award_mkbtop100-2015, netwerk_pioneering)
• Value: Human-readable display name (e.g., "MKB Innovatie Top 100 (2015)", "Pioneering")

Response Structure

This field contains detailed information about companies' innovation ecosystem memberships and awards. Each entry provides both the technical identifier and human-readable description:

{
    "Innovatie-ecosysteem": {
        "award_mkbtop100-2015": "MKB Innovatie Top 100 (2015)",
        "netwerk_pioneering": "Pioneering",
        "award_fast50-2015": "Deloitte Fast 50 (2015)",
        "netwerk_tfhc": "Task Force Health Care"
    }
}

Filter Usage

The ecosysteem filter allows you to filter companies by their innovation footprint categories. The filter uses keys returned from the /api/filter_values/ecosysteem endpoint, which provides a hierarchical structure of ecosystem categories.

Available Filter Values Structure

The /api/filter_values/ecosysteem endpoint returns a nested JSON structure organized by categories:

{
    "award": {
        "accenture": {
            "award_accenture-2020": "Accenture Innovation Awards 2020"
        },
        "fd-gazellen": {…}
    },
    "investering": {
        "investering_prime-ventures": "Prime Ventures",
        "investering_techstars": "Techstars"
    },
    "rvo": {
        "horizon": {…}
    }
}

How to Use Filter Keys

You can use any key from the ecosysteem response structure as a filter value. This includes:

• Top-level categories: Use keys like patent, rvo, techleap to get all companies in that category
• Sub-categories: Use keys like challenger50, fd-gazellen to get companies in specific award programs
• Specific items: Use exact keys like award_winnaars-social-impact-lab-pwc for precise filtering

Filter Examples

Note: The filter keys correspond exactly to the keys available in the Innovatie-ecosysteem response field and from the /api/filter_values/ecosysteem endpoint.

Complete Python Script

import requests
import pandas as pd
import json
import time
from requests.auth import HTTPBasicAuth

# Configuration (see Environment Variables Version)
USERNAME = 'your-email@example.com'
PASSWORD = 'your-password'
BASE_URL = 'https://online.innovatiespotter.nl/api/companies'

def fetch_companies_to_csv():
    start_time = time.time()
    df = pd.DataFrame()
    
    # Fetch data from multiple pages
    for page_num in range(1, 10):
        try:
            # Build URL with filters
            url = f"{BASE_URL}?sort_direction=desc&sort_column=werknemers&werknemers=Cat. 01: 1 - 1,Cat. 07: 100 - 249&geregistreerd=true&page_number={page_num}"
            
            # Make request with authentication
            response = requests.get(url, auth=HTTPBasicAuth(USERNAME, PASSWORD))
            response.raise_for_status()
            
            # Parse JSON response
            data = response.json()
            companies = data['companies']
            
            # Append to DataFrame
            page_df = pd.DataFrame(companies)
            df = pd.concat([df, page_df], ignore_index=True)
            
            print(f"Fetched page {page_num} - {len(companies)} companies")
            time.sleep(1)  # Rate limiting
            
            if len(companies) == 0:
                break
                
        except Exception as e:
            print(f"Error on page {page_num}: {e}")
            continue
    
    # Export to CSV
    if not df.empty:
        df.to_csv('innovatiespotter_companies.csv', index=False)
        print(f"Exported {len(df)} companies to CSV")
    
    end_time = time.time()
    print(f"Total execution time: {end_time - start_time:.2f} seconds")

# Run the function
if __name__ == "__main__":
    fetch_companies_to_csv()

Environment Variables Version (Recommended)

import os
import requests
import pandas as pd
from requests.auth import HTTPBasicAuth

# Use environment variables for security
USERNAME = os.getenv('INNOVATIESPOTTER_EMAIL')
PASSWORD = os.getenv('INNOVATIESPOTTER_PASSWORD')

if not USERNAME or not PASSWORD:
    raise ValueError("Please set environment variables")

# Your API code here...