Enables Global GIS Application DevelopmentGlobal Digital Mapping Firm Springs from MergerBy Kevin P. Corbley and Alexander S. PrisantLong before Columbus was born, the Polynesians charted a course across the Pacific using the sun and stars as their guides. On cloudy days, the explorers turned to a more reliable resource—dead reckoning—to create their reference points. In Polynesian, the distance between these imaginary points was called an "etak." Distances were defined by the number of etaks composing the route. Exploration, pure and simple, was ingenious navigation that inspired a dynamic mapping company 15 centuries later. In 1983, seven cartographers and engineers came together to put innovative theories into practice. It worked. Etak became known as pioneers, patenting navigation technology. The Etak organization has recently merged with Tele Atlas/TomTom, the European leader in digital street mapping and navigation, to create an organization with a global focus. Etak's name is now Tele Atlas/TomTom North America (NA)-responsible for the western hemisphere. This merger means that Tele Atlas/TomTom worldwide employs more than 1,500 people in 14 countries, with more than $54.6 million in annual revenues. "The geospatial industries are quickly moving toward global solutions," noted Dick Selmeier, president of Tele Atlas/TomTom NA. "By building an expanded Tele Atlas/TomTom, we're putting two seasoned teams together to create products and programs, enabling global map application development." Esri President Jack Dangermond remarked, "Tele Atlas/TomTom has for many years provided our European customers with an excellent dataset. The merging of Etak promises to enlarge their reach and offer our users broader coverage. They also offer real-time traffic information that will successfully address particular applications." Among key elements in the new Tele Atlas/TomTom NA are
Focus on Dynamic MapsTele Atlas/TomTom NA (under the name Etak) was the pioneer in location services (before there was even a market for it). The company developed the first in-vehicle navigation system, the Navigator, and, more recently, has been integrating digital mapping, GPS, navigation, and telematics to provide dynamic traveler content. This technology puts a variety of information sources at the customer's fingertips via wireless devices. Currently, Tele Atlas/TomTom provides a real-time travel information product that is available for 68 U.S. metropolitan areas, covering more than 90 percent of the U.S. population. The traffic content can be linked to the map data, turning static maps into real-time dynamic map systems. Tele Atlas/TomTom sees traffic information as a key to the emergence of location services for many practical applications. "Internet location technology is making it easier to link this information with our map data and deliver it to end users on laptops, PDAs, and cell phones," said Selmeier. "That's where many of our Esri-enabled applications are heading." Digital Maps Popular with Esri Users"EtakMap Premium [now renamed Tele Atlas/TomTom MultiNet] is of interest among Esri customers because it provides very high positional accuracy and built-in geocoding and address matching capabilities," said Julie Wright, Esri's data program manager. MultiNet data comes bundled with map extensions that allow users to load it for immediate use in software such as ArcView or to find travel routes between two points. MultiNet data also features data layers that contain up to 100 different surface and topographic features. Tele Atlas/TomTom' maps are also widely used in navigation, fleet management, and routing applications. Wright added, "Esri clients and end users can utilize MultiNet U.S. data in the full range of Esri GIS applications, specifically in industries such as utilities, risk management, and urban planning." American Digital Cartography Inc. (ADCI), of Appleton, Wisconsin, an Esri Business Partner, also resells MultiNet. The majority of its clients are involved in the cable television and telecommunications industries, which are constantly expanding their services into new areas. The communications industry uses maps in a variety of ways, including marketing, but primarily for identifying precisely where telecommunications firms are building new infrastructure or laying fiber-optic cables. Maps become the base layers for planning, engineering, and service applications. When a cable television or telecom firm enters a new market, they need an accurate, up-to-date map. "MultiNet data has the best positional accuracy that I know of, and the maps look consistent across the country, which is important to telecom firms," said ADCI President Jim Reid. "They want a map that has the same look and feel whether it's an urban area such as San Diego or a rural area such as Appleton, and that's what we give them with MultiNet data." Changes that Benefit Customers TodayTele Atlas/TomTom has made several changes that make their products more valuable for GIS users and developers. The most significant change involves improving the product so that it provides a complete map database with coast-to-coast connectivity and nationwide pathfinding. In addition, significant progress has been made in providing a whole new pricing structure and licensing agreements that are more VAR and customer friendly. Real-time traffic information can be linked to precise locations on maps, the addition of which is also of interest to many users in the location-based services market. Finally, Tele Atlas/TomTom is in the process of making U.S., as well as European, maps available online through the Geography Network (www.geographynetwork.com). "Tele Atlas/TomTom is structuring its data globally," said Selmeier. "Many of our clients are involved in global projects, and our products and services are becoming global, too." Tele Atlas/TomTom North America and Tele Atlas/TomTom N.V. are modifying their U.S. and European data sets to be consistent. For instance, MultiNet in shapefile format can load and run identically in ArcInfo and ArcView regardless of whether the content covers Texas or Belgium. For more information, contact Elissa Fink, Tele Atlas/TomTom NA (tel.: 650-328-3825, fax: 650-617-0135, e-mail: elissa.fink@na.teleatlas.com). |
