Looking to extend the scope of its high-performance Hadoop distribution, MapR Technologies Inc. today is announcing the addition of native JSON support to its NoSQL database.

JSON (Javascript Object Notation) is a text-based, human-readable data interchange format that is commonly used to represent simple data structures and objects. It is widely used in Web browser-based code and is considered a simpler alternative to XML.

The primary benefit of JSON is flexibility. Statements can be easily modified and extended without changes to the underlying database. This also enhances customization by making it possible for data changes to be made on the fly and incorporated into other processes. The downside is that JSON performance is generally considered to be inferior to alternatives, particularly relational databases.

MapR’s native JSON support lets developers quickly stand up more business applications on more data types and sources, the company said in a statement. MapR has implemented an Open JSON Application Interface (OJAITM), which is designed to be a general purpose JSON access layer across databases, file systems, and message streams, “enabling a flexible and unified interface to work with big data,” the company said.

MapR Chief Marketing Officer Jack Norris used the example of a product catalog to illustrate the benefits of JSON integration. JSON enables a record to be updated instantly with customer comments, a process that would involve re-indexing a relational database. “SQL statements can run to 20 lines to find a single record. With JSON you can do that in a single get,” he said.

MapR offered examples of how a single line call in JSON can review a complete record of data about a complex business object. MapR has added a variety of enhancements to enable efficient data access by returning only requested data elements along with fine-grained security and Apache Drill integration.

A developer preview package of MapR-DB with native JSON support is available immediately and can be downloaded here. General availability is set for next quarter